She Stayed
by JCSwriter
Summary: How did he survive? Seriously injured. Alone. Abandoned. What if he didn't? What it someone had been there for Rick? For Merle? If you asked either man to explain his connection to her, he would say simply "she stayed". Connecting to them all, but especially to Merle. Redeeming a man who thought his soul was lost. AU. Adds an OC, keeps Merle in the storyline, so spoilers exist.
1. Chapter 1

*x*x*x*x*x*

How did Rick survive? Four weeks or so in an abandoned hospital, injured, unconscious, and alone? How did Merle survive? With a freshly amputated hand in a city overrun by walkers. What if they weren't alone? If you asked either man to explain his connection to her, he would say simply "she stayed".

Rick was determined to keep his wife and son safe at all costs. But she had been the one to stay. She had been the one to keep him alive. He couldn't let her go after that. Even if it meant playing nice with Merle Dixon.

Merle had long since decided that his soul was gone. Eaten away by abuse and neglect, further destroyed by drink and drugs. All that had mattered for a long time was keeping his brother close and safe. Then she came along. And stayed. Saving him in Atlanta. Finding a niche in his heart, healing his soul. He would protect her to his last breath, learning to live again in the process.

*x*x*x*x*x*

**She Stayed – _The Princess, The Deputy, and The Big Bad_**

**The Walking Dead and all recognized characters and situations belong to AMC, the writers, producers, creators, and actors. I own nothing and make no money from this. Song lyrics are "Sweet Child O' Mine" ****lyricists: Rose, W. Axl; Hudson, Saul; McKagan, Duff Rose; Stradlin, Izzy; Adler, Steven Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group**

**Also there's probably a rule somewhere about having three stories in progress at the same time, but this one would not leave me alone, and I wanted to see if anyone was interested before I went further. Neither of the others have been abandoned.**

*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*x*

_She's got a smile that it seems to me  
Reminds me of childhood memories  
Where everything  
Was as fresh as the bright blue sky  
Now and then when I see her face  
she takes me away to that special place  
And if I stare too long  
I'd probably break down and cry  
*x*x*x*x*x*  
_

The gunshot echoed through the abandoned corridors of the hospital. The dead, barricaded in rooms and stairwells, moaned and banged around. Sobbing. He could hear someone sobbing like their heart was breaking.

Rick twisted in the hospital bed, "You do not tell Lori that happened. Ever!" His eyes fluttered but didn't open.

*x*x*x*x*x*

"Uncle Rick? You need to wake up now. Please."

Water was placed in his mouth and he swallowed and licked his lips. "Lori?"

She sighed heavily.

*x*x*x*x*x*

"Carl?"

"Uncle Rick? Open your eyes. Please. You need to open your eyes now."

"Lori?"

*x*x*x*x*x*

"Lori? I'm sorry."

Silence.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Sobbing.

Silence.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_She's got eyes of the bluest skies  
As if they thought of rain  
I hate to look into those eyes  
And see an ounce of pain  
Her hair reminds me of a warm safe place  
Where as a child I'd hide  
And pray for the thunder  
And the rain  
To quietly pass me by_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Rick Grimes finally awoke. There was a pitcher of water on the table but he knocked it over, spilling the precious fluid across the floor. He stumbled from the bed, groaning as movement pulled muscles and tendons long unused. "Nurse? Help." It was a struggle to get up from the floor but he managed to crawl to the bathroom and gulp water. He looked at himself in the mirror, gasping at the sight of his emaciated face with a scruffy overgrowth of beard. "Nurse? Anyone?"

He looked around the hospital room. On the table sat several cans of Ensure and similar nutritional drinks, a few cans of fruit, and a jar of peanut butter. There was a blanket and pillow on the sofa under the window. He looked down at himself. He was clean. The bandage around his abdomen was clean and dry. "Hello!" he yelled. There was a banging in response. He stumbled out of the room. Wires hung from the ceiling, lights flickered off and on, telling him that the hospital was running on a generator that was probably almost out of fuel. He found a nurses station, abandoned. He tried the phone but there was no dial tone. He stumbled along.

It took him three times to realize the chained doors didn't read Don't Dead Open Inside. About the time he deciphered Don't Open, Dead Inside, the doors were pushed inward and a decaying hand slipped into view.

Rick fled the hospital with only one thought in mind, finding his wife and son.

*x*x*x*x*x*

She was almost to the door when she realized the gurney was no longer blocking the doorway. She ran in, dropping the bundle of bandages and antiseptic on the floor. "No," she cried out, slapping a hand over her mouth reflexively. Quickly she shoved the supplies into a heavy duty backpack, crammed the food and nutrition drinks in, then she fled. She could only hope Rick had left under his own power. If so there was only one place he would go. Home.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Rick was waving at the man staggering toward him when the blow landed on the back of his head. He fell back seeing a young boy. "Carl?" he asked.

A gunshot ripped through the silent neighborhood. She ran faster. When she reached the house, she saw Rick sprawled on the ground with a boy holding a shovel over him and a man with a gun.

"Get away from him! Now!" she leveled the gun at them, holding it firmly with both hands, taking a shooter's stance. "Go away!"

The man backed up, hands raised, taking the boy with him. Once they moved far enough away, she lowered the gun and ran to Rick's fallen form. She dropped down next to him, "Uncle Rick?"

He focused on the child kneeling over him, saw the pale gray blue eyes, the golden hair hanging messily in the pale drawn face, "Sara?" then the world went black.

"Please," she turned to the man she'd ordered away. "Please help him."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Consciousness returned slowly. Rick blinked in the dim light of the room. He lifted his head to look around. Sara lay curled at the foot of the bed. Her eyes were closed. He tried to reach for her and found that he was tied to the bed.

"Did you get bit?" a voice came out of the shadows.

"Shot," Rick replied. "Bit by what?"

"I told you, sir," Sara sat up to glare at the man. "He was shot before this all started. He wasn't bit."

"Sara?"

She watched the man come forward and place his hand on Rick's forehead. The man sighed, "If you had it, the fever would have set in by now." He pulled a knife and cut through the bonds securing Rick to the bed. "Come on out when you're able."

Rick watched him leave and shut the door, "Sara? What's going on?"

Sara turned, "I went to get bandages and stuff. I didn't know you'd wake up so fast."

"No," Rick coughed. "I mean, what is going on? What are those things?"

"Dead," Sara replied. "And not."

Rick reached for her finally and she scooted to him. He pulled her against him. "You're going to have to explain, baby girl."

"What do you remember?"

"Getting shot," he rubbed the bandage.

"That was three months ago," she replied.

"What?"

"You lost a lot of blood. Then you had surgery and the doctor put you into a coma to heal. It was about two or three weeks later that people started saying that dead people were getting up and attacking people. Eating people. Things started to go crazy real fast. When the news said the hospital was being evacuated, Daddy took me there to get you. But someone said that they were going to come back for you so we stayed with you. Nobody ever came."

"Where's your daddy, baby girl?"

Sara's face fell and a shudder went through her slight frame. Rick rubbed her back. "He went to get more drink shakes. We'd been giving them to you. When he came back, he had a bloody towel on his arm. He told me to stay with you. I knew he was bit. He couldn't stay with us. He told me to come when I heard the shot to get the gun back." She started to weep. "I couldn't let him Uncle Rick. I… followed him. Suicide is the worst wrong. So I took the gun and I…" she broke off and her eyes went distant, "You have to shoot in the head. You have to kill the brain or they get back up and eat you."

"How long? How long ago was that?"

"Fifteen nights," she whispered.

Rick held her, rocking slightly. "Where's my family, Sara? Do you know where Lori and Carl are?"

Sara shook her head and wiped her face, "I heard Uncle Shane and Daddy arguing. Uncle Shane said he was taking Miss Lori and Carl away. He wanted us to come but Daddy said we should stay."

*x*x*x*x*x*

"I'm Morgan Jones," the man introduced, "My son Duane."

"Rick Grimes," Rick replied. "This is Sara Reilly."

"Sister's kid?" Morgan asked, "She's been calling you Uncle Rick."

"No," Rick shook his head, "Her Daddy's a good friend. He and I are deputies with King's County Sheriff's Department."

"Ah, deputy sheriff," Morgan grinned at his son. "Duane thought you were a bank robber."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Later, both kids were asleep, both men sat staring out the windows keeping watch. Morgan glanced over to where Sara was curled into a ball on the mattress, "I can't imagine Duane on his own like that. How old is she?"

"Ten," Rick replied. "Duane?"

"Thirteen." Morgan smiled at his son. "Where's her momma? Her daddy?"

"Her mom's dead. Five years ago." Rick sighed, "She said her dad got bit. Told her to stay and take care of me. Two weeks, she's been taking care of me by herself for two weeks. My son Carl is twelve and can't remember to wash himself daily." He rubbed his face. "I'd have died if it wasn't for her."

Something bumped into the side of the house and the men fell silent.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Rick stood in his deputy uniform in front of his locker, gathering his belongings. Sara stood looking at her father's. Rick walked over and clicked the lock combination into place, "Zero six two one. Your birthday. Best day of his life. You'd think no man on earth had ever had a baby girl before. You know he threatened me a week later. Told me that if Carl ever made a move on you he'd kill us both. Carl was two. Kept saying you were boo-tiful." She smiled as she gathered photographs and her father's things into her backpack.

"You think we'll find them in Atlanta?" she asked. Rick nodded. "And I can stay with you?"

"Absolutely," Rick stooped to her height. "I'm here. I'll take care of you now." He hefted his bag and extended his hand and she slipped hers into his grasp. "Let's go."

*x*x*x*x*x*

"That's right. It's not a toy. You pull the trigger, you have to mean it. Always remember that, Duane," Rick said.

Duane nodded.

"And never fire a shot unless you know exactly what is in the line of sight," Sara added. "My dad always says that."

Rick looked away and caught sight of the walker in the deputy uniform.

*x*x*x*x*x*

After Rick dispatched the half rotted corpse in the grass he walked back to the patrol car. Sara sat in the passenger seat watching him solemnly. He climbed into the driver's seat and accepted the bottle of water that she offered.

"I couldn't just leave her there like that," Rick explained.

Sara nodded, "I know."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Rick hadn't been on horseback in a long time. And he'd never ridden with a kid clinging to his waist. But they made good time into the city. Riding along the highway, the outgoing side was filled beyond capacity. The ingoing side was empty.

"Why didn't they use both sides, Uncle Rick?"

"I don't know Sara. Maybe they had this side blocked off for emergencies."

She snorted, "I think this whole thing qualifies as an emergency."

He chuckled, "Yeah, guess so."

They trotted along, through the abandoned military barricade, by walkers who reached for them as the horse clopped by. Rick gripped her hands where they clutched at him. A helicopter caught his attention and he urged the horse into a gallop to follow it, straight into a vision of hell. As the horse fell, he fell one way, Sara went the other.

"RUN!" he screamed at her, swinging at the walkers and knocking several back. "HEY!" he caught their attention as Sara scrambled to her feet. She ran straight to a dumpster and climbed to the top quickly, tossing off the backpack as she went, then jumping to grab hold of the fire escape and pulling herself up. Rick saw all of this before he crawled under the tank. He was desperately looking for any path to reach her when he spotted the bottom access hatch. But then he was trapped in a metal coffin surrounded by death. And Sara was outside alone.

"Hey you, dumbass. You in the tank. Cozy in there?"

Rick snatched up the radio mike, "The girl. Where's the girl?"

"Fire escape. You want to get out of there, you do exactly what I say."

"I am not leaving without her."

"Would never ask you to. You ready to move, this is going to have to be fast."

Rick took a deep breath, "Yeah."

Rick exploded out of the tank, whipping his head around to find Sara. She was crouched on the lowest level of the fire escape with two walkers reaching up, trying to grab her. He leapt down the side of the tank, swinging the pipe to take out the walkers not distracted by the horse. He ran to the dumpster and kicked it into the walkers, throwing one to the ground. The other charged Rick. He swung the pipe and nearly decapitated the first walker, then he impaled the second, still lying on the ground. He grabbed Sara's discarded backpack and slipped it over one shoulder.

"Come on," he yelled to Sara. She immediately clamored through the opening in the fire escape and dropped into his arms. He ran a short distance before setting her down to run, her hand firmly clutched in his. He rounded a corner and came face to face with a person.

"Whoa, not dead," the young Asian man said, staring down the barrel of Rick's gun. "This way."

Rick lifted Sara up to begin the climb up to the roof, following close behind her. Up on the roof he thanked the young man, who introduced himself as Glenn.

"Rick Grimes, this is Sara," Rick said as he took Sara's hand again.

Glenn smiled at Sara, "Hello. That was really smart you know? Climbing like that. Smarter than trapping yourself in a tank."

Rick chuckled, "Yeah she's been smarter than the rest of us since she was about three. Gets on your nerves sometimes." Sara smiled.

They descended back to street level into an alley and Glenn radioed his friends.

Inside, a woman pointed a gun directly at Rick's face and he quickly tucked Sara behind him. "We're dead because of you!" she cried.

As the others explained, Sara peeked around Rick's side. The woman saw her and started to lower the gun. Rick snatched it from her and pointed it back into her face.

"Anybody ever tell you that you don't point a gun unless you plan to pull the trigger?" he growled. "Guess not since no one ever told you that they work better if you take the safety off." He let the gun fall, swinging on his finger and nodded for her to take it. Once she did, he stepped closer, getting right into her face, "Don't you ever point a gun at me or my kid again, you hear me?"

*x*x*x*x*x*

Up on the roof, Rick confronted Merle Dixon, putting a gun to his head and cuffing him to the pipe. They made their plan for escape.

Rick drew Sara off to the side. "I need you to stay here, OK? I'm going to get us out of here, I promise. But you stay up here and come down with the others."

"We didn't find them," she whispered.

"I know. But I'm not done looking. Come down with the others. And stay away from the ass… ah… redneck, OK."

"I'm going to stay here," the large black man said. "I'll keep trying to reach our camp on the radio. I'll keep an eye on her. I'm T-dog."

"Rick," Rick replied. "This is Sara."

T-dog gave her a wink and smiled despite the bruises on his face from Merle, "Hello sweetie."

"Hi," she replied.

Rick gave her one last look as he and the others left the rooftop.

"T-dog will keep her safe," Glenn advised. "He's a good guy."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle was throwing insults and demands at T-dog who simply ignored him.

"What kind of name is T-dog?" Sara asked.

"Self-given," T-dog laughed. "Theodore Douglas, at your service ma'am," he bowed low to her. He saw her glance worriedly over the edge of the roof, "Don't worry little one, your daddy will be back in a minute."

"Hey little princess," Merle called, "Come here."

"Hey leave her alone," T-dog snapped. "Unless you want her daddy to come back and put a bullet in your head."

Sara walked over to Merle, staying just out of his reach.

"You tell your pa I was real nice to you and that he should un-cuff me," Merle smiled and winked at her. "I swear I won't hurt nobody. Just got a little crazy from the heat is all."

She stared at him with an intensity that made him shift nervously. "You shouldn't lie." Then she pulled a bottle of water from her pack and rolled it to him. He caught it, watching her as she walked back over to stand near T-dog. He opened the bottle and took a long drink of the water, never taking his eyes off Sara.

*x*x*x*x*x*

The group was watching Rick and Glenn make their way down the street covered in walker guts. Sara blinked as the first drops of rain hit her face. She lifted her face to the shower and smiled slightly. Merle watched her.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle screamed as they began to flee the rooftop, leaving him cuffed.

"HEY!" Sara yelled, "You can't just leave him!"

T-dog swore softly and turned back with the key. Then he fell and the key disappeared down the drain. He and Sara stared after it.

"I'm sorry man," T-dog cried. He grabbed Sara's hand and yanked her along. He let go of her as they reached the doorway. He ran through first. Sara grabbed a crowbar that was abandoned on the roof. She slammed the doors closed and hooked it through the handles. T-dog whirled, "Girl? No. Open this door." He shoved at the doors but the crowbar held firm. "SARA OPEN THIS DOOR!"

Sara turned and ran back to Merle.

"What the hell you doin' princess?"

"I think I can pick the lock. I've done it before with my dad's cuffs."

T-dog had stopped yelling for Sara. They heard the clang of chains. Then silence.

*x*x*x*x*x*

"I dropped the damn key," T-dog admitted in the van.

"Where's Sara?" Rick demanded.

"She stayed on the roof."

"What the hell do you mean she stayed on the roof?" Rick slammed on the brakes.

T-dog looked at him with guilt evident in his eyes, "She was behind me. She blocked the door shut. I tried to get it open but…"

"We have to go," Jacqui begged. "You can't stop here."

"I gotta go back," Rick replied. "I can't just leave her there."

"You can NOT take us back there," Andrea replied.

"Please," Jacqui sobbed, "I'm sorry about your daughter but we can't go back. Please."

"I can't leave her. You don't understand. She stayed with me. She kept me alive when everyone else left. I promised to take care of her. I can't leave her."

"Deputy," T-dog said, "We can't go back there now. There's too many of them. We'll go back to camp and get more men and guns. There's another cop there. He'll come with us. Merle's brother. We'll go back and get her."

Rick threw himself out of the driver's seat. "One of you drive." He sat in the back of the van with his head resting in his hands as Morales moved into the driver's seat. "I should've let him kill you," he whispered just loud enough for T-dog to hear. "If we don't find her, I'll kill you myself."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Rick fell to his knees as he embraced his son and his wife.

"How?" Lori cried.

"Sara," Rick replied. "Jack stayed behind to take care of me. Sara kept at it after Jack… died."

Shane blinked at him, "Jack? Jack's dead? He… I thought he got out with Sara."

Rick leveled his gaze, "Sara heard you arguing. She said you knew he wanted to stay."

"Wanted to yeah. I wanted to, but knew I had to get Lori and Carl out," Shane replied. "I offered to bring Sara with us. He said no. Said they'd be OK. But once things got so bad I never thought he'd stay there with her."

"Where's Sara, Dad?" Carl asked.

"I've got to go get her," Rick kissed Carl's face again. "She's still back in Atlanta."

"Rick," Lori hissed. "You're here. I'm here. Your son is here. Please."

"Lori, I cannot leave her there. Shane we gotta go." He kissed her and stood up.

"Hold up brother," Shane protested.

"Let's go," Glenn said. "Come on."

"No, not now," the old man in the hat said. Rick glared at him, "I'm Dale. Nice to meet you. Look it's late. It'll be dark soon. Merle's brother should be back before too much longer. He'll want to go with you. It'll be safer to leave at first light."

"She'll think I abandoned her," Rick whispered.

"Well, when you find her, she'll know you didn't," Carl replied.

*x*x*x*x*x*

The door was still chained. Rick reached through and pushed the crowbar loose easily, catching it so it wouldn't clatter on the roof. He glared at T-dog as he shoved the doors open. Daryl pushed by to rush across the roof. Catching sight of the cuffs still attached to the pipe and the amputated hand, Daryl let out a wail of pain and grief.

*x*x*x*x*x*

"I can't believe you guys thought I'd been eaten by those dogs," Glenn snickered.

"You weren't there man," T-dog replied. "Guy said he'd feed you to his dogs. How're we to know they were little squeaker dogs?"

Daryl was walking far ahead of them, looking left and right, up and down. Every so often he would whistle. A three toned, whippoorwill call.

Rick was bringing up the rear, the bag of guns slung over his back. He trudged along also looking all around, for any sign of her. Of him. Part of him hoped Sara was with Merle. Hoped some sense of decency still existed in the harsh, racist asshole. If not, he could only hope she could survive. She'd done it before. Alone. Watching over him. But that had been in the relative safety of the hospital, not on the streets of walker-filled Atlanta.

Daryl whistled again.

"Man you're gonna bring the hoard down on us," T-dog cautioned.

"Shut the hell up," Daryl snarled. "Before I remember it was you left my brother up there to die!"

T-dog glanced back at Rick, obviously remembering Rick's threat in the van.

Suddenly a face appeared around a corner almost directly in front of Daryl. Rick saw the messy blonde hair and dirt streaked face. "Sara?" he called.

She stepped into view.

Daryl grabbed her by the shirt and slammed her into the side of the building. When she cried out, he back handed her across the face. "Where's my brother you little bitch? Huh? Where is he? Where did you leave him?" he shook her violently before Rick could reach them and yank Daryl back. When Daryl lunged, Rick met him face to face. Sara simply pointed down the alley she'd just emerged from.

Daryl raced around the corner and slammed into Merle who was staggering out. Merle hissed and backed up. His right arm was in a makeshift sling strapped firmly to his chest. "Bout time you showed little brother. Thanks for workin' me into your busy schedule." He shoved by. "Princess? Where you at girl? What I tell you about wanderin'?" Sara walked toward him. "What? Who hit you, Princess?"

"I did," Daryl replied.

"Why'd'ya do a fool thing like that? I told you a thousand times, you do not hit a girl," Merle growled into Daryl's face. "You do it again and I'll snap you like a twig, you hear?"

"She cut your damn hand off," Daryl cried.

"I made her!" Merle retorted. "Damn geeks were comin' up the fire escape. Pilin' up on the ladder and reachin' the roof. I'd'a died if she hadn't been there."

"I couldn't pick the lock," Sara whispered.

Rick stooped, "This is not your fault!" He pulled a handkerchief and wiped her face.

"Nah," Merle jerked his chin at T-dog, "S'his."

"I said I was sorry," T-dog said.

"Oh well that makes everythin' all better," Merle snapped. He cradled his injured arm and panted for a moment. "Let's get movin'. Come here, Princess."

Rick walked back and picked up the gun bag. Merle had his hand on Sara's shoulder but let go as they started walking. Glenn took point, leading the way back to the van. T-dog brought up the rear. Daryl walked on one side of Merle, Sara and Rick were on the other. Merle had Sara's backpack slung over one shoulder. After a short distance, Daryl took it. Rick watched as Merle reached out several times to touch Sara's shoulder or back. Always keeping her within arm's reach.

*x*x*x*x*x*

_She's got a smile that it seems to me  
Reminds me of childhood memories  
Where everything  
Was as fresh as the bright blue sky  
Now and then when I see her face  
she takes me away to that special place  
And if I stare too long  
I'd probably break down and cry_

_woah oh oh_  
_Sweet child o' mine_  
_woah oh oh oh_  
_Sweet love of mine_

_She's got eyes of the bluest skies_  
_As if they thought of rain_  
_I hate to look into those eyes_  
_And see an ounce of pain_  
_Her hair reminds me of a warm safe place_  
_Where as a child I'd hide_  
_And pray for the thunder_  
_And the rain_  
_To quietly pass me by_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

One final note – minor thing reference Carl calling adults by their first name. My impression of Rick is that he would raise Carl to be respectful and call them Mr. or Ms. (i.e. Mr. Dale. Ms. Carol). Also in my experience, men in uniform bonded beyond family due to the nature of the work, not only call each other 'brother' but frequently have their kids calling partners or teammates 'aunt' or 'uncle' (Uncle Shane). Just a small thing in my AU but you may notice it so I mentioned it.


	2. Chapter 2

**She Stayed – 2 - **_**The Princess, The Deputy, and The Big Bad**_

**The Walking Dead and all recognized characters and situations belong to AMC, the writers, producers, creators, and actors. I own nothing and make no money from this. Song is "Sara" by Jefferson Airplane/Starship. ****Lyrics by: Wolf, Ina / Wolf, Peter © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group, EMI Music Publishing**

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Go now, don't look back, we've drawn the line  
Move on, it's no good to go back in time  
I'll never find another girl like you, for happy endings it takes two  
We're fire and ice, the dream won't come true  
*x*x*x*x*x* _

Merle screamed as they began to flee the rooftop, leaving him cuffed.

"HEY!" Sara yelled, "You can't just leave him!"

T-dog swore softly and turned back with the key. Then he fell and the key disappeared down the drain. He and Sara stared after it.

"I'm sorry man," T-dog cried. He grabbed Sara's hand and yanked her along. He let go of her as they reached the doorway. He ran through first.

Sara grabbed a crowbar that was laying amongst the scattered tools. She slammed the doors closed and hooked it through the handles.

T-dog whirled, "Girl? No. Open this door." He shoved at them but the crowbar held firm. "SARA OPEN THIS DOOR!"

Sara turned and ran back to Merle.

"What the hell you doin' princess?"

"I think I can pick the lock. I've done it before with my dad's cuffs."

T-dog had stopped yelling for Sara. They heard the clang of chains. Then silence.

*x*x*x*x*x*

She tried the drain first, but it was tight and deep. She couldn't even see the key.

"Uncle Rick will come back," Sara said as she dug through the scattered tools, finding a tiny screwdriver.

"He ain't your dad?"

Sara shook her head. She knelt down and gripped the cuffs to try and slip the screwdriver into the keyhole. It slipped in her sweaty hands and cut a gouge into her palm. She never paused.

Minutes slid into hours. The sun beat down on them with unsympathetic intensity.

Sweat poured down her face. Merle grabbed the bottle of water, "Drink some."

"I have more," she replied.

"Good, then you can drink somma this," Merle snapped.

She obediently took a drink of the water. Merle took a drink then held it between his knees to twist the cap back on. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped her face with it before wiping his own.

She blew out a frustrated breath, "This is too big too." She tossed away the needle nose pliers she'd been trying to force into the keyhole.

"What did you use the last time?"

"Paperclip."

"Why were you pickin' cuffs anyway?"

"I was bored."

Merle yanked at the cuffs. "Go get the crowbar, maybe we can pry it open."

"I doubt it, but…" she shrugged and stood up. She walked over to the door and grasped the crowbar. Then the door was shoved from the inside and a rotting arm reached toward her. Sara fell back landing hard on her back.

"GET BACK HERE!" Merle yelled.

Sara scuttled back on her hands and feet, then rolled to stumble back to Merle.

"You get scratched girl?" Sara shook her head but Merle grabbed her arm to examine it. "OK leave the crowbar where it is."

"I think T-dog chained the door," she said.

"And?" Merle looked at the other tools. "Go see what else is there."

Sara gathered the tools back into the kit and brought it over to him. There was a wrench, a saw, a hammer, and a heavy mallet. He tried to use the wrench to twist the smaller pipe but his hand kept slipping and he couldn't get any leverage in his position. Merle jerked at the cuffs again. "The pipe's rusty. Use the mallet. Get a good swing on it. Do not hit my hand." Sara hefted the mallet. Merle pulled away as far as he could. She lifted it above her head and brought it down but did nothing to the pipe. She took a step back, raised it over her head again, and slammed it down. The impact ripped the mallet from her hands.

"Damn it girl!" Merle screamed as the mallet bounced into his side. Sara was looking at her hand. Merle grabbed it and she cringed. Her palm was ripped open. "Shit!" He yanked the bandana from his pocket and pressed it to her hand to stop the bleeding. "You got any first aid stuff in your pack?" She nodded and he hooked it with his foot, dragging it closer. He started rooting through the bag and she pulled it away from him with a glare. She pulled out a tube of antibiotic ointment and roll of bandages. Between the two of them, they smeared ointment onto the wound and wrapped her hand. She reached for the mallet again. "No," he shook his head. "That ain't gonna work, you ain't strong enough. You'll end up rippin' your muscles at this rate. Maybe try the saw..."

Then a groan could be heard. Louder than the rumble from the streets, even louder than the walkers in the stairwell. Merle whirled. A walker rolled over the ledge of the roof. It staggered to its feet and began a fast stumble toward them. Merle yanked at the cuffs, nearly sobbing. Sara unzipped the bottom pocket of the backpack and pulled out a gun. She walked away from Merle, over to the walker. She took a standard shooter's stance, lifted the gun in both hands, and fired straight into the walker's skull. It dropped like a stone. Moans echoed up from the street and another decaying arm reached up. Sara crept over to the edge and looked down. She backed up rapidly and turned to run back to Merle.

"They're on the fire escape," she gasped. "They're piling on top of one another."

"You need to go. Need to run as far and as fast as you can," Merle said as he kicked at the cuffs.

"I'm not leaving," she snapped. She put the gun down and picked up the hacksaw. She started trying to saw through the pipe.

He picked up the gun and pointed it at her. "I said, GO!"

She turned to look at him square on. He stared into her eyes over the barrel of the gun. She didn't blink. Neither did he. Crystal blue into silvery blue. If he still had a soul, he would think she was staring straight into it. Suddenly he had to gulp air, completely surprised to find that he'd stopped breathing. He blinked.

Another walker was crawling towards them. "Plug your ears," Merle ordered.

"Safety's on," she replied as she pushed her fingers into her ears.

He grunted and clicked the safety off before firing a shot to kill the walker. He put the safety back on and laid the gun in his lap. She went back to trying to saw through the pipe. The moaning was getting louder, he could hear the slamming of walkers trying to get the door open. She was sweating heavily, her hand was bleeding through the bandage. He took another drink from the water bottle. Then he took hold of the saw and brought the blade down to his wrist.

"No," she shook her head violently. She began to cry. "Please."

"Ain't no other way," he snarled. He drew the saw back and pushed it forward, cutting into his own flesh. He cried out in agony but kept cutting. She wept, huge shuddering sobs ripping through her small frame, but she helped him saw through his wrist. Blood spurted out, covering them both.

Merle howled.

Finally the saw made it through the bone and flesh. Merle yanked free.

Sara yanked a t-shirt from her pack and pressed it to the wound. Then she unbuckled his belt.

"Hey Princess, quit that, I ain't no pedophile!"

"Shut up!" she snapped, as she yanked the belt free from his pants and looped it around his arm as tightly as she could.

"Shut up? You a mouthy little thing ain't'cha?" He spit out a laugh that ended almost in a sob. "Gun," he hissed. "Kill it."

She turned and saw another walker coming at them. She took the gun, clicked off the safety, balanced it on the pipe and shot the walker directly between the eyes.

"Grab your pack," Merle said. "We gotta go." He took the gun, flicked the safety and tucked the weapon into his pants.

She slipped her arms through the backpack then stood to help him rise. He draped his uninjured arm over her shoulders. Muttering curses under his breath, he managed to get his feet, hissing in pain. Another walker appeared over the ledge, but it wasn't high enough to climb over so they ignored it. Merle leaned down and grabbed a wrench from the scattered tools.

"You want your hand?" Sara whispered.

"Leave it," he replied. "Ain't like we can finda doc to sew it back on." He led the way to the far side of the roof and looked down. There was a ten foot drop to the next roof. Merle sat on the edge and jumped down. He looked around quickly, then came back, "Come on, Princess." He held up his uninjured arm. She sat on the ledge and leaned down to slide to him. He caught her easily and carried her across the roof to the access door before sitting her down. He opened the door and looked inside, "You stay right behind me, yah hear? No wanderin' off." She nodded.

Inside he dispatched two walkers with the wrench. He stumbled to his knees, panting and groaning in pain. She stood right beside him, waiting silently. When he gathered himself enough to rise, she helped him. Despite the tourniquet, he was bleeding heavily. She looked at it worriedly.

"Don't die, OK?" she whispered.

"OK," he replied.

He led the way down a few more levels of the office building until they found a fully functioning kitchen / break room. He lit the stove and sat the meat press over the heat. He opened every cabinet and drawer, but found nothing. He sighed. "Go sit over there. Face the corner. Close your eyes and plug your ears." She was shaking as she did as he'd ordered. "Stay there 'til I tell yah."

He stared at the flames for a long time, gathering himself. Finally he unwrapped the t-shirt from his wrist and used it to grab the press. He took several deep breaths, then pressed the hot metal to the bleeding stump of his arm. His skin and blood sizzled. The scent of burning meat filled the air. He sobbed with the agony of it all but continued cauterizing the entire stump. Once he was done he threw the press down and stumbled back. He fell, sprawling across the floor. "Shit, Shit, SHIIIIITTTTTTT!" he screamed.

Sara crawled over to him, tears were streaming down her face. She poured some water onto a clean t-shirt and wiped his face. "Told yah to stay in the corner," he snarled, then passed out cold.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Danger, in the game when the stakes are high  
Branded, my heart was branded while my senses stood by  
I'll never find another girl like you, for happy endings it takes two  
We're fire and ice, the dream won't come true_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Merle awoke abruptly. The pain hit almost instantly. He looked down at his right arm. There was a bandage wrapped securely around the stump which was propped up on a large pot. He glanced around. There were candles scattered around the kitchen, all lit along with the stove, generating enough light to see the room. The empty room.

"Princess? Where you at?" She walked back in. He reached up and grabbed her leg, "I done told you to stay with me. No wanderin'."

"I had to pee," she said. "Found some stuff."

He sat up slowly. She handed him a half empty bottle of expensive whiskey. "Where'd you find this?"

"Desk drawer. Found cookies and crackers in a file cabinet."

He held the bottle between his knees to open it. Then he guzzled, drinking half of the remaining alcohol in one swallow. "Any more geeks inside?"

"Haven't seen any," she replied as she tore open a package of peanut butter crackers. "But I can hear one upstairs. Think it's just one." She held out the crackers. He took two then pushed the package back to her. She ate them slowly. "I thought Uncle Rick would be back by now."

"It's dark. He ain't comin' tonight," Merle replied as he drank more of the whiskey. "Doubt he'll come back at all."

She glared at him, "He won't leave me."

"Princess, he already did."

She looked away and finished the crackers. Merle staggered to his feet and wandered out of the kitchen. He walked into one of the offices and unzipped to pee into a trash can. Walking back, he found an open soda machine in the hallway. Only a few bottles of soda remained, but he grabbed them. He walked back and found Sara where he'd left her. He handed her one of the bottles of soda then sat to open another.

He sighed and rubbed his face, "We'll stay here tonight. Can't be runnin' round the city in the dark. Head out tomorrow. Gotta get back to the camp, to my brother."

"I can come with you?"

He nodded, "Yeah." He studied her for a moment then began to sing. "_Sara, Sara, storms are brewin' in your eyes. Sara, Sara, no time is a good time for goodbyes_." He grinned and swigged the last of the whiskey. "You know that song?" She nodded. "Go to sleep." He watched as she went back over to the corner and curled up into a ball. He sighed and drank some more of the soda. He took the pot and a few others to lay in the hallway as noisemakers. Then he walked over to stretch out behind her. He laid his injured arm onto his chest with a moan. She scooted back slightly until her back was against his side. "_Sara, Sara, storms are brewin' in your eyes. Sara, Sara, no time is a good time for goodbyes_." He sang the chorus over and over until her breathing leveled out in sleep.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_('cause Sara) Loved me, like no one ever loved me before  
(and Sara) Hurt me, no one could ever hurt me more  
(and Sara) Sara  
(and Sara) Nobody loved me anymore  
__*x*x*x*x*x* _

The next morning they shared the last soda and a package of cookies. He left her to stand in the doorway with his back to the room so that she could change into her last set of dry, clean clothes. She found a tablecloth and cut it down to use as a sling for his arm. He scoffed at the bright red and white checkered print but allowed her to tie it behind his neck.

He broke out a window in the side of the building overlooking an alley. He climbed through first, checking out the area before coming back to lift Sara down. Before he let her go, he put his face close to her ear and whispered, "You stay close, on my left side. No wanderin'. You stay silent. Walk silent. No talkin'. You do what I tell you, when I tell you. If I tell you to run, you run as far and as fast as you can. Can you whistle?" She nodded in response. "OK, I whistle, you whistle back, and I'll find you. Got it all?" She nodded again. "Don't die. Don't get bit. Don't get scratched. Do. Not. Die." She nodded. "Let's move." She took her place by his left hand and they started making their way through the invested city.

He kept up a rapid pace. Pausing at every corner to peer out. Occasionally he would grab for her, yanking her back or forward. Or just judging her distance. A few times he scooped her up under one arm to dart across a street. He broke into a few stores, but they were all scavenged clean. They only managed to find a single bottle of water that he rationed carefully but they quickly went through it. The heat was oppressive, the humidity even worse. Both of them were soaked with sweat and slowing down.

Suddenly Merle heard a familiar three toned whippoorwill call. He pursed his lips, but they were too dry to respond. He tried to follow the sound, but couldn't track it as it echoed and bounced around the buildings. He stepped into an alley to get out of the direct sun, pushing her ahead of him. He leaned up against the building and slid down to sit, panting, cradling his arm against his chest. The whistle came again. Close. Then he heard voices. Sara walked away from him to peek around the corner.

Merle heard Officer Friendly's voice, "Sara?" and Sara stepped further away from him. It was a struggle to get to his feet as the sound of Daryl's furious voice reached him. He lurched forward and slammed into his brother, bouncing back and hissing with pain as Daryl's chest impacted his arm. "Bout time you showed little brother. Thanks for workin' me into your busy schedule." He shoved his brother out of the way. "Princess? Where you at girl? What I tell you about wanderin'?" Sara walked toward him, there was a red mark on her face. "What? Who hit you, Princess?"

"I did," Daryl replied.

"Why'd'ya do a fool thing like that? I told you a thousand times, you do not hit a girl," Merle growled into Daryl's face. "You do it again and I'll snap you like a twig, you hear?"

"She cut your damn hand off," Daryl cried. Merle could tell from his eyes that he was beyond upset. Scared, worried, and pissed off.

"I made her!" Merle replied, anger in his tone. "Damn geeks were comin' up the fire escape. Pilin' up on the ladder and reachin' the roof. I'd'a died if she hadn't been there."

"I couldn't pick the lock," Sara whispered.

Rick stooped, "This is not your fault!" He pulled a handkerchief and wiped her face.

"Nah," Merle jerked his chin at T-dog, "S'his."

"I said I was sorry," T-dog said.

"Oh well that makes everythin' all better," Merle snapped. He cradled his injured arm and panted for a moment. "Let's get movin'. Come here, Princess." Merle laid his hand on her shoulder to pull her back to his left side. He let go as they moved forward. Daryl took Sara's pack from Merle and slipped it onto his own back. Merle reached out several times to touch Sara, the heat and pain making it more difficult to judge how far away she was.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Go now don't look back we've drawn the line  
Move on it's no good to go back in time  
I'll never find another girl like you, for happy endings it takes two  
We're fire and ice, the dream won't come true  
__*x*x*x*x*x* _

They reached the outer limits of the city, traveling under the highway in the shade. Rick had Sara by the hand, keeping her moving.

"Guys," Glenn said, "Van's gone."

"What?" Daryl jogged away from his brother. "What the hell? City's dead and somebody steals our van?"

"You sure this is where you left it," Merle asked.

"Yeah," Rick replied. His head fell, "Shit. This is going to be a very long walk."

Sara sighed heavily.

Daryl took her pack off of his shoulders and handed it to T-dog. He took the gun he was holding to Rick, then moved the crossbow to his chest and stooped in front of Sara. "Climb on, kid."

"I can…" Rick started.

Daryl shook his head, "You got the guns. I got her." He looked at Sara. "Come on, kid, we ain't got all day." She slipped her arms around his neck. He stared at the bandage on her hand.

"Tore her hand up tryin' to get me loose," Merle explained.

Daryl slid his arms under her knees and stood up.

"Got her OK?" Glenn asked.

Daryl snorted, "She weighs like ten pounds, I think I can handle it."

Rick patted her back as they started walking. "Keep your eyes open for another car."

They walked silently. Once they completely cleared the city, the sun beat down mercilessly. Trudging along, Glenn and T-dog in the lead, Daryl, Rick, and Merle side by side. Sara perched on Daryl's back. Hour after hour, mile after mile.

Merle stumbled. Rick caught him, but Merle sank down to the ground. "Jus' need a minute," he mumbled.

"We need water," T-dog said. "And a car. With AC. And a pizza. Large with pepperoni."

Glenn sighed, "A steak and baked potato, with a large iced tea. Extra-large iced tea."

"Why don't you just wish for a million dollars and a purple pony while you're at it?" Daryl snarled.

T-dog shrugged, "Don't think a million dollars would be worth much these days." He walked over to Merle sitting on the ground. "You gonna punch me if I help you up?"

Merle shook his head and accepted T-dog's offer. T-dog hauled him to his feet and draped Merle's good arm over his shoulders. "Not half bad for a ni…"

"Finish that word and I will drop you on your face," T-dog warned as he grabbed Merle's hand in his and wrapped his other arm around his back.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Danger, in the game when the stakes are high  
Branded, my heart was branded while my senses stood by  
I'll never find another girl like you, for happy endings it takes two  
We're fire and ice, the dream won't come true_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

They plodded along. There was no breeze. Just the relentless sun. Merle leaned heavily on T-dog. Rick held his side. Glenn took off his hat and fanned himself with it.

Suddenly Daryl stopped. "Somebody? Grab her." He bent over at the waist, one hand gripping Sara's wrist, the other trying to hold around her back. "She's out. Grab her."

Rick dumped the gun bag and lunged to Daryl, catching Sara as she slumped backwards. He knelt to lay her on the ground. Her eyes were closed, her mouth open as she breathed shallowly.

"Oh God," Rick cried as the others gathered around. "She's burning up. Heart's pounding."

"Princess?" Merle dropped down next to her.

"She ain't sweatin' no more," Daryl observed. "This is bad. We gotta get her in someplace cool."

Glenn closed his eyes and sighed. Then he opened them and looked around. "Guys. I know where we are." He smiled. "I know where we are and I know where we can go." He started away, "Come on. It's not far." He went off the road and crossed through a field.

Daryl shoved the crossbow over to his back and took Sara out of Rick's arms. Rick grabbed the gun bag and moved to Merle's injured side and supported him along with T-dog. Glenn jogged ahead. A walker stumbled out of the tall grass, but Glenn nailed it with the butt of the gun he carried and kept going.

Finally another road appeared, and a small strip of stores. Glenn headed directly for the end unit. "My boss's cousin owns this." He went to the back door and reached up to pull a key from above the doorframe. Rick followed him inside.

The interior of the small restaurant was dark and somewhat cooler than outside. They could see the entire room by the light filtering through the boarded front windows.

"Ain't much better in here," Daryl snapped as he carried Sara inside.

Glenn held up a finger as T-dog half carried Merle in. He walked over to a large freezer on the far side of the kitchen and opened it. The kitchen was enveloped in amazingly cool air. "My boss is so jealous of this place. Said the freezer would survive Armageddon. Damn if he wasn't right." He walked into the freezer and came back out with two half melted bags of ice. "There's more in there."

Rick grabbed one and carried it to the massive double sink set into an island in the middle of the kitchen floor. He blocked the drain and dumped in the cold water and ice. Daryl sat her down into the water. As soon as she came into contact with the coolness, she woke, struggling and whining.

"Easy, baby girl," Rick said. "You just got too hot. We gotta cool you down. It's OK." He held her still.

Daryl grabbed a kitchen towel and soaked it to wring it out over her head and back. He scooped up a handful of ice and pressed it to the back of her neck.

"I'm gonna throw up," Sara warned.

Daryl bent her forward over the other sink as she began to cough. There was nothing in her, so she only dry heaved a few times as Daryl continued to drench her with the cold water. He grabbed a piece of ice from the fresh bag Glenn brought and placed it into her mouth. Merle watched him from the table where T-dog had sat him down. Daryl caught his eyes and stepped away from Sara.

Rick glanced from one to the other then moved in to comfort and cool Sara. "You know, when you were born, everyone said you were the most beautiful thing they'd ever seen," he said. "Your momma, every nurse and doctor in the NICU, even the other parents visiting their babies. I actually heard people gasp when they caught sight of you the first time. But your Daddy and I and your Uncle Shane knew. That as gorgeous as you were, you were even stronger. You fought so hard to live right from the start. You never took a step back. Not once. You hit every milestone twice as fast as the doctors said you would and you never stopped moving forward." She stared up at him with her mother's intense, silver-blue eyes. "You are a survivor baby girl. You always have been and always will be. But you gotta tell us when something's wrong, OK? If you don't feel good. Or if something hurts. OK?" She nodded and he went back to cooling her down.

Glenn handed Merle and T-dog each a large paper cup of icy water. "Get me a bucket or somethin' of ice." Merle demanded. Glenn looked at him. Merle rolled his eyes. "Please."

Glenn walked back and found a bucket and filled it with the contents of an ice bag and carried it out to Merle. Merle quickly unwrapped the stump and plunged it down into the cold water, moaning in relief.

Glenn walked away to look out the front window. "I'd forgotten about that."

Daryl walked up next to him. "What?"

"They were building a pharmacy," Glenn pointed. "Just finished a few weeks before the shit hit the fan. The owner here made more off the construction workers than he had the entire year before. Most of them kept coming back after the job was done because the food was so good."

"Most pharmacies were emptied out," T-dog reminded.

"Yeah but this is kinda out of the way," Glenn replied. "They built it because that new housing development was going in out here. And since it was new…"

"People may not have known it was there," Daryl finished. "Worth checking out. Gotta keep Lil' Bit inside for a while anyway."

"Stop calling her a bitch," T-dog hissed.

"Didn't," Daryl retorted. "Called her 'Lil Bit'. She ain't but a little bit'a nothin'."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Daryl, Glenn, and T-dog jogged across the street to the pharmacy. Out in front sat an old model SUV with a homemade trailer attached to the back. The hood was up, all the windows were open. Daryl went to the engine and looked, "Looks like it overheated. Get in and try it."

Glenn shook his head, "I can't hotwire a car."

Daryl shrugged, "Time you learn."

T-dog reached inside and pulled out a set of keys, shaking them. "First lesson, check the front seat, the visor, and the ignition." He climbed in and started the truck. "Hot damn. It's even got AC and a half full tank of gas. Maybe our luck is changing finally."

"We found my brother and Lil' Bit in the middle of Atlanta and we're all still alive," Daryl said. "Think our luck is been pretty good all round today."

"True," Glenn replied. "Let's hope it holds."

They made entry into the empty pharmacy. Daryl went first, sweeping with the crossbow. There was a walker behind the pharmacy counter, dressed in a white lab coat. It paced back and forth, unable to lift the counter to escape. Daryl fired a single bolt and put it down.

Glenn sighed heavily as they stared at the empty store. It didn't even have the shelving assembled. "Damn," he said. "Guess it wasn't as finished as I thought."

Daryl vaulted the counter and retrieved his bolt. "Got meds," he called softly. "And a door."

"Careful," T-dog replied.

"No shit, really?" Daryl scoffed as he opened the door. "Steps. Cellar."

Glenn followed Daryl down, leaving T-dog up to keep watch. "Jackpot," Glenn grinned. There were multiple cardboard boxes stacked in a storage room. They were labeled with handwritten words such as 'food aisle', 'candy aisle', and 'first aid'.

"OK," Daryl said. "Come on up a minute." He led the way back up to T-dog. "I'm gonna get some meds over to Merle and Lil' Bit. You two pull the truck round and load up everything into the trailer. I'll come back."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Daryl found a reference manual under the counter and quickly looked up nausea and heat sickness. He found a list of medications for nausea but nothing related to heat. He gathered all of the drugs on the list along with all of the antibiotics and pain meds he came across. He also found a box of syringes.

"Hey," T-dog emerged from the cellar, "These should fit Sara." He handed over several child t-shirts and two pair of capri pants.

"Pharmacies sell clothes?" Daryl asked. Two of the t-shirts were plain, the other two advertised Georgia Peaches.

T-dog nodded, "Some do. Guess our luck is holding out."

Daryl nodded, tossed the clothes into the plastic bin where he'd gathered the meds, and left. He checked the street carefully then jogged back to the restaurant.

Inside he found that Rick had taken Sara out of the water. She was laying curled up on a table, wrapped in a tablecloth.

"Got meds," Daryl greeted. He handed Merle the syringes and the vials of morphine that he'd gathered. Merle immediately prepped his arm and injected the drug. "Also got antibiotics. You should…"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Merle nodded as the medication flowed through his system and he relaxed.

"And I got…" Daryl pulled the various nausea meds out and showed them to Rick.

Rick took one of each and went to Sara, "Baby girl, have you had any of these before, for when you got sick after the surgery maybe?"

Sara focused on the bottles and picked one out, "This. But it made me sleepy."

Rick smiled, "We can handle sleepy." He helped her sit up and gave her a pill along with a small sip of cool water. She curled back down on the table.

"Got her some clothes too," Daryl said. "And we found an SUV and trailer. The guys are loading what little the pharmacy had into the trailer."

"Good," Rick nodded. "There's some food left in the freezer. Not much, but it's still frozen. We'll take that too."

"She had surgery?" Merle asked.

"Broke her ankle jumping off a roof," Rick replied.

"Think you could fly?" Daryl snickered.

"Wanted to live," Sara whispered.

Both Dixon brothers looked to Rick. Rick shook his head and walked away.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_('cause Sara) Loved me, like no one ever loved me before  
(and Sara) Hurt me, no one could ever hurt me more  
(and Sara) Sara  
(and Sara) Nobody loved me anymore_

I'll never find another girl like you  
We're fire and ice, the dream won't come true  
_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Glenn drove the truck back over to the restaurant and parked just outside the back door. "We took everything," he reported to Rick. "It isn't much, just some snacks, candy, first aid stuff and cleaning supplies. And all of the meds. Not sure if we'll ever need it all but…"

"Better to have it," Rick nodded. "Good job."

Glenn grinned suddenly, "You know if she hadn't passed out, we wouldn't have stopped and I may not have remembered this place was here. If someone hadn't taken the van, we'd have driven right by. It's funny how things work sometimes."

Daryl filled a glass with ice and filled it from a bottle of ginger ale. He walked over to Sara with the glass and a jar of applesauce. She was sitting next to Merle looking groggy. "Try to eat," Daryl said. She nodded. "So what's the plan?" he asked, deliberately not looking at anyone.

Rick sat down, "We should eat while we're here. There's not much, but there's gas in the tank so we could fire up the grill."

"I'd feel guilty eating with everyone back at camp, you know, not," Glenn said.

"We will take back as much as we can," Rick said. "But we need to take care of ourselves too."

"I'll take ona'dem large burgers with everythin'," Merle ordered.

"You want fries with that?" Glenn responded.

"Sure," Merle said.

T-dog rose, "Been a while since I was a fry-cook, but guess I'll give it a shot." He went into the freezer. "We got a box of burgers. Still frozen by some miracle. Ketchup. Mustard. No rolls. No relish or onions. No vegetables. No fries."

"Beggars can't be choosers," Rick said. "Sara sweetie can you eat a burger?"

She shook her head as she dug into the applesauce. Merle laid his hand on her forehead and nodded to Rick.

"We got aspirin," Glenn said.

"Can't give her aspirin," Rick said, "She's too young. Find any children's Tylenol?"

"How can she be too young for aspirin?" Merle asked. "I use'ta give Daryl baby aspirin all the time when he was a kid."

"Well, now they say not to," Rick said as Glenn handed him the liquid Tylenol.

"They who?"

"I dunno. Doctors. Experts," Rick shrugged. "My wife." He measured out the medicine and gave it to Sara. She scowled at it.

"Here," Daryl said, pulling an ice cube from his glass. "Suck on that first. Makes it so you can't taste it."

T-dog fried up two burgers for each of the men. They ate quickly, used the bathroom, then piled into the truck.

Daryl went to the rear hatch, but Merle stopped him, "I'll take the back, need to stretch out."

Daryl laid the gun bag in and helped Merle climb up. "Sorry about all this brother."

"Wasn't your fault brother," Merle reassured him. "Was my stupid idea to come on the run."

"Yeah," Glenn walked out, "Next run I'm taking alone. You all are bad luck."

"Found Officer Friendly. Found Princess," Merle said as he settled into place.

Glenn grinned, "Oh I firmly believe they are good luck. Still coming alone next time."

"No arguments from me," Merle sighed.

Rick emerged carrying Sara who was now sound asleep. Her hair was damp on the ends, but she'd changed into her new clothes. He climbed into the back seat behind the driver's seat. Daryl took the seat next to him. T-dog sat in the passenger seat and Glenn slid behind the wheel and buckled his seatbelt.

"Someone wanna tell me why the Chinaman's drivin'?" Merle asked as he injected another dose of morphine into his arm.

"Dude, I'm Korean," Glenn replied.

"So what?"

"So it's a different country," Glenn said.

"It's like the difference between a redneck asshole from Georgia and a redneck asshole from Kentucky," T-dog responded.

"Oh," Merle said. "Fine. Someone wanna tell me why the Korean's drivin'?"

"He knows the way," Rick replied with a sigh.

Glenn pulled out onto the road and got the car up to speed.

Merle was relaxed almost to the point of dozing. His gaze fell on Sara's golden hair, resting against Rick's shoulder as she slept in his arms. "_Sara, Sara, storms are brewin' in your eyes. Sara, Sara, no time is a good time for goodbyes_." He sang softly.

"Don't," Rick shook his head. "Please."

T-dog glanced back, "It's a pretty song."

Rick nodded, "Yeah. It was Savvy's favorite song. Sara's mom. It's why she and Jack picked the name. She sang it to Sara all the time. Haven't heard it since she died."

Merle banged his head against the side of the truck, "Been singin' it to her all night. She never said nothin'."

Rick snorted, "I'm still surprised she's talkin' at all. Her usual response to severe stress is to go silent. Longest she went was a little over two years without a word."

"Two years?" Daryl asked, "What happened?"

Rick glanced down to be sure Sara was still sound asleep. "Four of us grew up together. Shane, me, Jack and Savvy. Runnin' around, raisin' hell. Always knew Savvy would end up with one of us. Didn't really think it was going to be Jack, but, it turned out well." He stroked Sara's hair. "He Shane and I took the Sheriff's oath together, shoulder to shoulder. Shane and I stood up when Jack and Savvy married. They stood with me when I married Lori." He smiled at the memory. "They were the first to meet Carl. I got to hold Sara in the NICU when she was two weeks old." His smiled faded. "When Sara was five, Carl was seven, we busted a meth dealer. Son of a bitch stood up in court and threatened us, our families, practically every one we'd ever met. Judge still set a low bond. Dealer walked out the same day. I sent Carl and Lori to her parents place. Savvy wouldn't leave. Son of a bitch found their address and set out for some vengeance with a bunch of his friends. Jack was on duty. We all were." He fell silent for a moment, lost in the memory. "They held Sara while they… brutalized Savvy. Sara managed to get away and run upstairs. One of them chased her. The house had a bathroom between two bedrooms. Place was falling apart, all Jack seemed to do is fix things. One of the bathroom doors had a broken lock, the other was set up so that if you opened the closet, you couldn't open the bathroom. She got him trapped inside. Then she climbed out a window onto the roof and jumped down. Shattered her ankle. Then she got up and ran a half mile to the neighbor's house. Last words she spoke were to the sheriff's dispatcher to tell us her momma needed help."

Daryl was staring out the window chewing on his thumb nail. Merle absently reached over and rapped his hand. Daryl put his hand down. "Did they catch them? Are they in jail?"

"We IDed them," Rick nodded. "Guy locked in the bathroom was eager to talk. But no, they're not in jail. They all met with… unfortunate accidents."

Silence stretched as they all processed the information.

"Hell, Officer Friendly, I might just actually like you," Merle snickered.

T-dog turned, "How old is she?"

"Ten," Rick replied. "No wait. Is it July?"

"Beginning of August, I think," Glenn answered. "Not sure. Dale might know."

Rick smiled, "She's eleven. End of June."

"Still just a baby," T-dog whispered. Then he chuckled, "Just realized. Dixon you've been calling her Princess. Sara is the Hebrew name for princess."

"Yeah," Merle replied. "And if you believe Dan Brown it was the name of Jesus' own kid. Your point?"

"No point, just making conversation."

"Dan Brown?" Glenn said.

"Wrote 'The Da Vinci Code' book," Daryl replied. "Said Jesus and Mary had a daughter named Sara. Bunch of people freaked out over the idea."

"I saw that movie," Glenn smiled.

Daryl and Merle both rolled their eyes. "You should read the book," Merle said. "Should read every book you can. Kinda sucks that all the books have been written. Won't be many more now. 'Less the walkers start publishin'."

Rick snickered, "Short book." He lowered his voice to a growl. "Walking. Saw man. Caught man. Ate man. Man dead. Man now walk beside me."

The others laughed, breaking the tension brought by Rick's story. Sara stirred in his arms, lifting up her head to look around. Merle winked at her and she settled back down. "Are we almost there?" The simple question had them all laughing again.

"Almost sweetheart," T-dog replied.

"Hey I didn't tell you," Rick said. "Carl is there. And Miss Lori. And Uncle Shane."

She smiled broadly, "You found them."

"Yeah." He kissed her head. "I did."


	3. Chapter 3

**She Stayed – 3 – She's ours now**

**The Walking Dead and all recognized characters and situations belong to AMC, the writers, producers, creators, and actors. I own nothing and make no money from this. Song is "Good Man" by Devour the Day (lyricist unknown) used without permission.**

***x*x*x*x*x* **

_I want to be a good man, I want to see God  
I want to be faithful but I know that I'm not  
I want to be a good man, I want to do right  
I don't wanna be a criminal for the rest of my life_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

The sun was sinking low in the sky when Glenn drove up to the camp. Sara was sitting between Rick and Daryl in the back seat. The SUV was quickly surrounded as they parked and emerged. Dale patted Glenn on the back as Jacqui greeted T-dog. Rick climbed out and reached in to lift Sara out. Shane appeared immediately and took her from him.

"Oh my sweet girl," Shane cried.

"Uncle Shane," Sara clung to him.

"Oh sweetie," Shane whispered into her hair. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"DAD!" Carl darted forward. Rick caught him in a strong embrace.

Lori followed, "We were getting worried."

Rick nodded, "There were a few complications."

Shane sat Sara down and she and Carl hugged.

Merle sat on the tailgate of the truck gathering himself. Daryl waited silently until Merle reached out. Daryl pulled his brother's uninjured arm over his shoulders and helped him stand. "Thanks baby brother," Merle groaned. He leaned heavily for a moment, then pulled free to stand on his own. Carl walked over as Merle and Daryl rounded the corner of the truck. His eyes went huge as he took the stump at the end of Merle's right arm. "What you want kid?" Merle snarled.

Carl walked over to Merle's left side and hugged him around his waist, "Thank you for taking care of Sara."

Merle stood with his arms straight out, looking down to Carl in shock. Then he patted him awkwardly on the top of his head, "No sweat kid."

Rick chuckled at Merle's obvious discomfort. "Come on Carl. Let's get Sara settled into the tent."

"Uhm," Lori started. She glanced from face to face. "Our tent is a little small for all of us. Maybe she can go in with Shane? Or Andrea and Amy?"

Andrea blinked at her, "Sure," she smiled at Sara. "Hi, I'm Andrea, this is my sister Amy."

Rick glared at Lori, "Can I talk to you a minute?"

The others moved away, back into the main part of the camp. Shane took Carl and Sara each by the hand and drew them away. Merle jerked his chin to Daryl, who left, following close behind Shane.

"You cannot seriously be doing this now," Rick growled.

"I just said it's crowded Rick," Lori protested. "With the two cots there's barely room to move and you want to add another one?"

"She stayed with me Lori," Rick replied. "She saved me. She kept me clean and fed. She kept me safe. She's alone. She's lost everyone. Jack is dead. She had to put him down herself when he got bit. God knows where the rest of her family is. She's ours now."

"She's not ours. She's not yours. Carl and I are yours," Lori shook her head, "Does it even occur to you how strange this all is? She kept you clean? She killed Jack? Do you know how wrong that all is? She's eleven."

"And she is alone," Rick repeated. "You can't do this. You can't make me chose."

"Chose?" Lori snapped. "I am your wife. Carl is your son. What choice is there?"

"As amusing as this is," Merle stepped around the SUV, "I'm tired."

"Do you mind?" Rick snarled.

"Not at all," Merle grinned. "Answer is simple Uncle Rick. *Miss* Lori. She comes with me."

"Perfect," Lori nodded.

"No," Rick shook his head. "Absolutely not."

"Why not Officer Friendly?" Merle moved closer.

Rick got right into his face, "Because you are a violent racist addict who could be a rapist for all I know. She is not going with you."

"Didn't have a problem leavin' her with me yesterday."

"I didn't have a choice."

"No," Merle sneered. "Somebody put a gun to your head, make you drive away? Make it so you couldn't get out of the car and come back for her?" His voice went higher as he mocked, "Uncle Rick won't leave me. Uncle Rick will be back any minute now." He scoffed. Rick stepped back with a guilty look on his face. "You can't make her stay with a woman who hates her," Merle said.

"I never said I hated her," Lori replied.

"No, he did."

Rick started, "What? I never."

Merle chuckled, "Course you did Uncle Rick. Uncle Shane. I'm guessin' it was Uncle Jack and Aunt Savvy. Then we got *Miss* Lori. Told me all I needed t'know. Let me guess again, little Sara looks just like her momma did, right?" he snorted as Lori turned away from his gaze. "So she comes with me. I owe her just as much as you. More. Cause all she knew about me was I was the violent racist asshole that her Uncle Rick cuffed to a pipe. Still she stayed with me. Saved my life."

"You saved hers," Rick replied. "You coulda left her behind at any point. You didn't. Debt's repaid."

Merle scoffed, "You don't know me at all if you think I coulda left a kid alone there. So fine, I saved her. Chinese say if you save a life, you are responsible for it forever. So you take you and yours. Your son. Your loving, faithful wife. I'll take mine. My brother and the little Princess. She's ours now."

Rick sighed and looked to Lori who wouldn't meet his eyes. He nodded to Merle and started to walk away but Lori stopped him, "You know that's not it. She is a strange child Rick. She always has been. I don't like having her around Carl."

"Can we stop talking about it?" Rick snapped. "You won. She's goin' with Dixon. But you explain it to Carl. Tell him his mom doesn't want his friend anywhere near him."

Shane was waiting for them as they approached the fire. Sara was sitting staring at the ground. Daryl was standing just behind her, chewing on his thumbnail. Merle walked over and stooped down to Sara. Shane looked at Rick who just shook his head.

"Hey Princess, you're gonna stay with Daryl and me," Merle said. "Let's get your shit together."

"Merle," Andrea said. "She's more than welcome in with Amy and I."

Amy smiled, "Sure. It'll be fun. Be nice to be the older sister for once."

Andrea rolled her eyes, "It's not all it's cracked up to be."

Merle shook his head. "She's goin' with me."

"You're OK with this?" Shane snapped to Rick and Lori. "Just sending her off with them?"

Merle glared at him, then turned to Sara, "Who you wanna go with? Coupla strangers? Any of these oh so nice people who are just jumpin' to take you from me? Or me and my brother?" Sara looked around at the group, most of whom were staring at the fire, avoiding looking at the confrontation. She silently pointed to Merle. "Well there yah go. All decided. Come on Princess." Merle offered his hand and she gripped it firmly. He pulled her gently to her feet and Daryl picked up her bag. Merle walked closer to Rick and Lori, "You know all this concern over your son and her influence on him. I'd buy it easier if you knew where he was right now."

Lori, Rick, and Shane looked around and just noticed that Carl was not in the group by the fire. "Where's Carl?" Lori gasped.

"He was just right here," Shane replied.

"CARL!" Rick shouted.

Everyone was on their feet as Carl emerged from his tent. "What?"

"Don't just disappear like that," Lori reprimanded.

"I went to go make room in the tent for Sara," Carl replied. "Wait, where's she going? Dad?"

Rick looked to Lori, "You're up." Lori glared but walked over to her son.

"No sweat kid, she'll see yah in the morning'," Merle said as he led Sara away. He raised his voice, "It's the damn apocalypse people, maybe try keepin' your kid close?"

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Everything that I've done before  
Has brought me back down to my knees  
I'm crying out to you, Lord  
It's getting harder and harder to see  
If there's good left in me?  
Is there any good left in ME?!_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Merle took Sara to their tent, off to the edge of the camp. There were two cots inside, both padded with heavy sleeping bags. "Gonna put you in this one," Merle indicated one of the cots. "Settle in, see how it feels." He stepped back out to Daryl. "Didn't talk to yah first."

Daryl shrugged.

Merle sighed, "She saved me brother. Stayed with me when the rest of those shitheads ran like rabbits. Officer Friendly ain't gonna fight to keep her. So she's ours now."

Daryl nodded, "S'fine."

"Yah understand what I mean when I say she's ours, right?"

"Yep. Family. And family comes first."

Merle smiled warmly at his brother. "I gotta take a piss," Merle said. "Then I want the truck moved in closer to us. Gonna take that now too." He handed over a set of keys. "Bike's yours."

Daryl took the keys wide-eyed, "You sure?"

Merle nodded, "Can't ride one handed. Stay with her 'til I get back."

Daryl climbed into the tent. Sara was taking the sleeping bag off of Merle's cot. She glanced at Daryl then laid it down onto the ground, making a bed for Merle. She sat down on the cot with a sigh.

"OK Lil'Bit?" he asked.

"Miss Lori never liked me," she replied.

"Well Miss Lori is a stupid bitch. Don't you pay her no mind."

Sara looked up at him with those intense silver blue eyes, "I'm weird. Everyone says so."

Daryl sat down on his own cot and shrugged, "Way I see it, you bein' you is what's kept you alive. You think any of those other kids in camp would be OK bein' alone? Be able to do what you had to, to save my brother? Hell no. Five minutes in a rough situation and they'd all be cryin' for their mommas. I… I wanted to say thank you for stayin' with Merle. For savin' him. Ain't many who'd do what you did." He had to look away from her gaze after a minute. He looked down then leaned over and untied her shoes. "We leave our shoes outside, so we don't track mud and shit in." He found a thick scar on her ankle and traced it with his finger. "S'is hurt?"

She shook her head, "Not since the doctor took the pin back out. I grew and it moved. That hurt." She sighed. "I got it when my mom died." Daryl nodded. "I ran as fast as I could, but I couldn't save her. It was too late."

Daryl inhaled deeply, "Me too. I ran as fast as I could, but my mom still died. I was too late to save her. Firemen wouldn't even let me try. I wasn't much older than you were."

"I'm sorry that happened to you."

"I'm sorry that happened to you too."

Her lip quivered, "I killed my daddy."

Daryl shook his head, "No you didn't. The walker that bit him did. You killed the monster he was becomin'. Ain't no shame in that. No wrong. You done what needed doin'." He had to look away from her gaze again.

Merle cleared his throat and stepped into the tent. "Go get the truck. You OK with leavin' yours?"

Daryl nodded, "Need more room now. Mine's got mosta tank a' gas. We should siphon it over." He touched the top of Sara's head as he left the tent and pulled his boots back on.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Daryl walked back to the fire and approached Glenn, "Need the keys to the truck. Merle's gonna take it. Can't drive the bike no more."

"Oh, sure," Glenn nodded, pulling the keys from his pocket. "Hey Andrea and Amy caught a whole boat load of fish today. We're going to fry it up along with the rest of the burgers from the restaurant. Kind of an end of the world surf and turf. You and Merle should bring Sara back in for dinner."

"Think about it," Daryl replied.

"Hey what are you gonna do with your pickup?" Glenn asked.

"Leave it, why?"

"Well… could I take it? It's not as sweet a ride as the Challenger, but then it's not got a broken window or its guts ripped out. It would mean I don't have to ride in Dale's Winnebago or T-dog's van. And it would mean you don't have to just leave it."

Daryl nodded, "I'll get you the keys."

"Cool," Glenn grinned. "Don't forget you still need to teach me how to hotwire a car." He trotted along behind Daryl.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Is there any good left in me?  
I want to be a good man  
Is there any good left in me?_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Merle had given himself another shot of morphine and stretched out on his bed on the ground. Sara was curled on the cot, staring off into space. Footsteps approached and Merle climbed from the tent. Dale and Morales approached cautiously.

Merle chuckled, "Lemme guess, you're both here to tell me she'd be better off with either of yah."

Dale looked at Morales then shook his head, "No. My guess is she's best off right where she is. Just wanted to bring you this." He held out a bottle of thick green gel. "It's aloe. For the sunburn."

"I'm fine," Merle replied.

"Good. Great. It's for Sara," Dale said stepping forward to put the bottle into Merle's hand. "Back of her neck and her arms look sunburned. This will help."

"And my wife sent these for her," Morales had a trash bag on his back. He sat it on the ground. "Just some clothes that my daughter's outgrown. And there's a blanket and a stuffed dog my daughter wanted her to have."

Merle glanced back as Daryl and Glenn drove up in the SUV. The trailer of supplies had been disconnected.

Sara emerged from the tent, "Thank you, sirs."

"You are welcome little one," Morales said. "Eliza and Louis are hoping you will come play with them and Carl and Sophia tomorrow. After morning lessons and chores." He looked back to Merle. "If it's OK?"

Merle nodded, "Yeah. And thanks."

Morales nodded and turned away, pulling Dale along. Dale smiled to Sara, "We've got a lot of fish tonight, Andrea and Amy caught a whole bunch today. Dinner will be ready soon, you all should come to the fire."

"I told Daryl," Glenn said as Daryl handed over a set of keys. "Cool! I got my own truck now!"

Merle looked at Daryl and raised his eyebrows. Daryl shrugged, "Don't need it no more."

"You coming?" Glenn asked.

"You want some fish? You hungry?" Merle asked Sara. She shook her head. "Nah. You go on." He picked up the bag Morales had set down to carry it into the tent.

Daryl walked back to the fire with Glenn, Dale, and Morales. Shane looked up, "Your brother bringing Sara?" Carl was sitting between his parents with his arms crossed and a mutinous look on his face. He glared at Daryl then deliberately looked away.

Daryl shook his head, "She's not hungry."

Rick nodded, then explained to the others, "She got sick from the heat earlier. I'll take her some applesauce, she ate that for us earlier. And we should get some more Tylenol in her."

"I'll take it," Daryl replied. "And take some fish for me and Merle." He accepted a plate of fish, a jar of applesauce from the trailer they had pulled close to the RV, and the bottle of children's Tylenol, then he left the gathering and returned to the tent.

Merle and Daryl ate the fish while Sara ate more applesauce. They gave her a dose of Tylenol. Then they settled in as darkness fell. Sara fell asleep almost immediately, curled up on the cot. Daryl lay on his cot, watching her in the dim moonlight, as Merle drifted off. He could hear the chatter from the others around the fire. The laughter.

Then the screaming started.

Merle shot awake instantly. Sara sat up. Daryl was already in his feet and pulling his boots on. Merle scooped Sara up in one arm and climbed out of the tent. The screaming and yelling continued along with gunfire. Merle went to Daryl's old truck, shifted Sara to his injured arm, and yanked the door open. He shoved her inside. "Stay here. Do not open this door for anyone except one of us." He clicked the lock and slammed the door. Daryl met him with a gun in each hand and his crossbow over his shoulder. Merle took a gun from him and led the way into the chaos.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_I want to be a good man, I wanna be a saved  
I want to be a free man but I feel like a slave  
and I'm crying out to you, Lord  
It's getting harder and harder to see  
If there's good left in me?_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Jim stared at the carnage, the bodies of the people, the blood stained grass, the slaughtered walkers, "I remember my dream now. Why I dug the holes."

Andrea sobbed over the body of Amy. It was the only sound in the silence.

Then a three toned whistle reached them. Whippoorwill.

Daryl whirled, "Sara," he darted away. Merle, Rick, and Shane were on his heels.

The pickup was surrounded by walkers. As they approached, shooting at the stragglers, one slammed into the passenger side window and shattered it. They saw Sara slam a tire iron into its face. The walker fell, blocking the window as another pulled at it, trying to move it out of the way.

Daryl shot that walker as the others put bullets into the rest. He dumped the crossbow into the bed of the truck and yanked the dead walker out of the window. He reached in and opened the door. He extended his arms, "C'mere." Sara launched herself from the truck into his arms. He caught her close, wrapping his arms around her as she clutched at him, gripping his waist with her legs. She was shaking.

Merle walked over, "She OK?"

Daryl nodded, breathing heavily.

Shane asked, "Baby girl, look at me," Sara lifted her head from Daryl's neck, "You get bit? Or scratched?" Sara shook her head. Shane smoothed her hair and leaned over to kiss her cheek. "That was real smart baby. Using the tire iron like that."

"I went for the eyes," Sara replied. "Eyes, nose, or crotch, right?"

"That's right," Shane nodded. "But with a walker, always go for the eyes. Shortest route to the brain."

Sara looked back at Daryl. He rubbed her back and she buried her face at his neck again. Shane backed away; he and Rick started back towards the RV. Merle took Shane's place at Daryl's side and laid his hand on the back of Sara's head. "From now on, one of us is with her. Always," Merle said. Daryl nodded

"She alright?" T-dog said from a few feet away.

"She's fine," Merle replied.

"Thank God. Oh man," Glenn moaned as he walked over and saw the shattered window in the pickup. "I am not supposed to have my own vehicle."

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Is there any good left in me?  
I want to be a good man  
Is there any good left in me?  
I want to be a good man  
Is there any good left in me?  
I want to be a good man  
Is there any good left?_

_*x*x*x*x*x*_

They spent the rest of the night in their vehicles. Not comfortable but more secure than a tent.

Carol sat in the back seat of her Jeep with Sophia having cried herself to sleep on her mother's lap. She stared out the window to where her husband's body lay, dry eyed and somber.

Shane sat on the roof of the RV while the Morales family joined Dale inside. He listened as they settled the kids down, then as Miranda sobbed. Once silence fell, he leaned back slightly, listening intently for any sounds from the woods.

Rick, Lori, and Carl joined T-dog and Glenn in the church van. Lori fell asleep with Carl's head on her lap. Glenn dozed fitfully. Neither T-dog nor Rick ever closed their eyes.

Jim sat in the front seat of his car with Jacqui asleep in the back seat. He kept one hand pressed to his stomach as he stared out into space.

In the SUV, Merle was in the back, sitting up with a gun in his hand. Sara was in the back seat, curled up into a ball under the soft fleece blanket from Morales. She lay awake for a long time, but finally succumbed to sleep. Daryl was in the front passenger seat, reclined back. He'd fallen asleep fairly quickly, secure that his brother was keeping watch.

Sara murmured in her sleep, flinching. Merle leaned over the seat and touched her shoulder. "Shh, Princess, you're safe." She settled, shifted and rolled over, falling back into deep slumber. He tucked the blanket around her and went back to keeping watch.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Pull me from the darkness, lift me back into the light  
Fill this empty vessel, fill this hole I have inside  
Am I worth forgiveness, I can't make myself believe  
Show me that you're listening and tear this devil out of me_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _


	4. Chapter 4

**She Stayed – 4 – Moving On, Letting Go**

**The Walking Dead and all recognized characters and situations belong to AMC, the writers, producers, creators, and actors. Song is "Let Her Go" by Passenger (Rosenberg, Michael David) used without permission. **

**This skips ahead in places, but I have to assume you remember what happened during "Wildfire" and "TS-19". Still AU, but if I didn't write about it there's no change.**

***x*x*x*x*x* **

Rick sighed as he walked back to camp. He had no way of knowing if the message had gone through to Morgan and Duane. He deliberately took the path that would lead him to the Dixon's SUV.

Merle glanced back from his position at a tree, "Mornin' Officer Friendly." His voice was low, somber. "Princess is in gettin' dressed." He finished and zipped his pants. "You get any sleep? You look like shit."

"'Bout as much as you, handsome," Rick replied.

"Who you callin'?" Merle indicated the radio.

"Friend. Guy who helped Sara and I back home."

"He havin' a better day than we are?"

"Didn't answer. Can only hope he heard me." Rick looked over to the tent where Daryl stood guarding the opening. Sara climbed out, dressed in a fresh set of clothes and clutching a small stuffed dog. Rick stooped, "Good morning. Where'd you get this?"

"Mr. Morales," Sara answered softly.

"He brought her some clothes," Merle said. "Blanket. Toy's from his girl."

"That was nice, did you thank him?" Rick asked. Sara nodded.

Merle rolled his eyes, "Yes she did and so did I. What're you, the manners police?"

Rick inhaled deeply then stood to face Merle. "Raising kids isn't just feeding and shelter you know."

Merle scoffed, "I know. How'd'ya think this one turned out so good?" He jerked his chin at Daryl.

"That explains a lot," Rick replied.

Merle puffed up angrily. Daryl rolled his eyes and extended his hand, "Come on Lil' Bit. Let's go see what's for breakfast." Sara grasped his hand, turning back once to wave as Daryl led her into the main camp.

Rick sighed, "I'm sorry. That was uncalled for." Merle eased back. "We're going to have to find a way to get along. For her sake. For all of ours. Despite… yesterday… and Lori… I can't just let her go."

Merle nodded, "I'll… make an effort."

"Thanks. I will too," Rick replied. "I'd offer my hand but I know where yours has just been."

Merle chuckled, "I hate the fact that I like you, Officer Friendly."

"Right back at'cha, Racist Asshole," Rick grinned. Then he sighed and sobered. "We gotta put down those bit last night. Including Amy. Bury our dead. Burn the rest."

Merle nodded. "Let's get to work."

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Well you only need the light when it's burning low  
Only miss the sun when it starts to snow  
Only know you love her when you let her go_

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low  
Only hate the road when you're missin' home  
Only know you love her when you let her go  
And you let her go  
_  
__*x*x*x*x*x* _

Daryl led Sara by where Andrea knelt over Amy's body. He let her hesitate for a moment then tugged to get her to follow. Carol sat staring at her husband's body. Lori walked over and gently rubbed Carol's back then took Sophia by the hand and brought her over to the central area where Carl waited. The others began to gather around.

T-dog picked up a box from the stack of supplies and carried it over. "We got single serving cereals." He opened up the box and started walking through.

Lori gave a half smile, "Oh this ought to be interesting." She let Carl and Sophia each pick a container of sugary kids' cereal.

"Why?" Daryl asked as he grabbed one at random after Sara picked hers.

"It's a lot of sugar for kids who haven't had any in a while," Lori explained as Carl eagerly dug into the treat. "They'll be swinging from the tree tops soon."

"Ahh," Shane chuckled as Merle and Rick joined the group. "Uncle Shane's patented baby-sitting technique. Amp 'um up full of sugar, let 'um run around like psychotic little tornadoes for a few hours, then they crash and fall asleep and Uncle Shane can watch TV." He dumped a mouthful of his own sugary cereal and crunched happily.

"Yeah, it's all fun and games until someone decides to climb a water tower," Lori said with a sideways look at Sara.

"Climb a water tower?" Dale asked as he selected a plain, more adult cereal. Shane and Rick both winced. Rick selected his own cereal, then pulled the lid off the one Merle picked.

Carl laughed, "Yeah. Mr. Leon… that's a guy who worked with Dad and Uncle Shane… he told me there were sharks inside the tank and I wanted to see them. So Sara and I snuck out after Uncle Shane went to sleep and climbed up."

Rick sat with Lori, "Climbed up then discovered he was afraid of heights."

"It was really high," Carl replied. "And there weren't any sharks."

"Leon always was an idiot," Shane said.

Lori bit her lip, looking at Carl, "It was your idea?"

Carl nodded, "Sara said it was stupid, but," he shrugged, "I wanted to so we did."

Merle caught Lori looking over at Sara and smirked at her.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle and Daryl took Sara over to where one of the walkers lay in the dirt. "Usin' the tire iron was good, Princess," Merle said. "But you need to learn to use and keep hold of a knife." He grabbed hold of the walker and sat it up then nodded to Daryl. "Don't use the hurt hand."

Daryl knelt down behind Sara and pulled his knife from the sheath. She took it and he corrected her grip. "Hold it like this. Then you thrust it, hold tight and pull back. Don't let go of the knife. Go for the eyes. Go on, Lil' Bit."

Sara planted her feet, aimed, and thrust the knife straight into the walker's eye. She buried the blade into it, all the way to the hilt, then yanked it back out. She grimaced at the fluids staining the steel. "Yuck."

"Yeah yuck," Daryl said. "Means you did it right. Straight through the eye into the brain. Kill the brain, kill the walker. Do it again."

*x*x*x*x*x*

"A walker bit Jim!" Jacqui shouted. They'd been gathering the bodies for burning or burial when her shout brought them all running.

As soon as Jim reacted defensively, Daryl scooped Sara up with one arm and retreated to the edge of the camp. He kept her tucked to his side, with his hunting knife in his other hand. Merle advanced with his gun cocked and ready only to be confronted by Rick. Merle paced back and forth as the others argued over what to do and where to go. As Rick reasoned that the CDC would be Jim's best hope, Merle snarled at him, "Fine, we'll just put him in your car with your wife and son. You OK with that?"

As Rick helped Jim into the RV, Merle walked over to where Daryl stood with Sara. He gripped Daryl's shoulder and nodded. Daryl slid the knife into its sheath and let Sara down.

"We goin' with them?" Daryl asked.

"Yeah," Merle nodded. "Rick's right. If there's anyone left in charge, anyone left to get us ahead of this thing, they'd be there." He glanced over as Amy began to reanimate. He started forward, but Andrea responded, putting her sister down.

Later as Andrea lowered her sister into the ground, Merle was there to help her climb from the grave. "Damn shame. She was a good, sweet kid. Didn't deserve this."

"Nobody deserves this," Andrea whispered.

Glenn approached slowly, "Merle? I… uh… I still have your hand. In my backpack. Do you… want it?"

"Bury it," Merle replied. "We bury our dead, right?"

Glenn nodded and went to get his pack. When he returned, Merle wasn't in the gathering at the gravesite. Daryl was there, with Sara by his side.

"Stay right here," Daryl softly ordered Sara. He walked over to Glenn and opened the pack, shielding it from the others. He took his brother's hand, wrapping it carefully back up in the bandana and carried it to the end grave. He knelt down and carefully placed it into one corner.

Merle returned. He knelt down next to Daryl, staring down at the wrapped hand. Then he pulled a baggie from the sling and dropped it into the grave. Rick and Shane exchanged glances, recognizing vials of cocaine and blue crystal meth. Merle met their eyes steadily, then he stood up, pulling Daryl with him. They walked over to where Sara waited, taking places on either side of her. She reached out and took both of their hands.

After the funeral, Rick announced that they would leave for the CDC at first light. Anyone going needed to be ready.

Merle led the way back to their SUV. "We'll pack up tonight. Sleep in the truck again. Princess, go on into the tent and start." After she kicked off her shoes and disappeared into the tent, Merle led Daryl a few paces away. "Been through this before. Gonna be a rough couple'a days. You're gonna have to take care of her."

"We could wait here," Daryl said. "Or find another place to ride it out."

"No," Merle shook his head. "CDC may be our best shot. Maybe doctors there. Look last time it lasted three, maybe four days. And face it I ain't been out all that long so I ain't been usin' as long as last time. I'm gonna wanna sleep. Maybe round the clock. And eat like a horse. Probably cry like a baby, beggin' you to come back here and dig that shit up. Do not do it! You hear me?"

Daryl nodded, "What can I do?"

"Keep Lil' Bit away from me. I ain't gonna be pleasant to be around."

"So normal then."

Merle chucked and rapped his brother's cheek, "Wise ass." He slid his hand down and gripped the back of Daryl's neck. "We're gonna be OK baby brother. I'll get through this." Daryl leaned forward and rested his forehead against his brother's. "And I promise, no more."

"For her."

"Yes," Merle admitted. "And for you. And for me. I screwed up in Atlanta. Was seriously messed up on that rooftop. No good coulda come from fightin' with them like that. Cop was right to stop me. Not sayin' cuffin' me to the pipe was his best decision." He sighed. "I'm tired of screwin' up, brother. Time to stop. Still need the morphine for a bit, arm hurts like a bitch. Wouldn't say no to a stiff drink right about now. But the other stuff… I'm done."

_*x*x*x*x*x*_

_Staring at the bottom of your glass  
Hoping one day you'll make a dream last  
But dreams come slow and they go so fast_

You see her when you close your eyes  
Maybe one day you'll understand why  
Everything you touch surely dies  
_*x*x*x*x*x*_

Rick was awake before dawn. He ascended to the ridge to try to contact Morgan. When he turned around, he saw Merle standing at the gravesite. Rick sighed and walked over.

"Mornin'," Merle said.

"G'mornin'," Rick replied.

"Get any sleep?"

"Some. You?"

Merle nodded, "Lil' Princess is still out. Daryl's up. We'll be ready when you want to go."

Rick inhaled deeply, "Look, Merle… Have you ever been through withdrawal before?"

"Yeah," Merle replied, "I know what's comin'. Daryl will take care of Sara. I'm gonna sleep mostly. Few days it'll be over."

"We can't wait."

"Ain't askin' you to. I can sleep in the back of the truck on the road."

Rick nodded.

Dale walked up, "Sorry to interrupt but Jim's in bad shape this morning. Merle, T-dog told me that you have morphine. I was wondering if you could spare a vial. Might give Jim a little relief."

Merle nodded, "Yeah I can spare it. Fever will burn it out of him fast."

Dale nodded, "Jacqui is going to ride with him. She knows how to give injections."

Merle met them back at the RV with two vials of morphine and several syringes. "I marked the syringes for a single dose," he said as he handed the medicine to Jacqui. "Don't overdose him. Though it wouldn't be a bad way to go."

Jacqui glared at him, "We're trying to save him."

"Tryin' don't mean doin'."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Glenn pulled out of the camp, waving as Morales drove his family in the other direction. He was grinning in the driver's seat of Daryl's old truck, despite the plastic and duct tape repair of the passenger window. He was driving in the lead, somewhat confident he could lead the group to the CDC.

T-dog followed him with the church van. Andrea was in the back of the van, laying across several seats. Rick drove behind him with Lori, and Carl. Carol and Sophia followed in her Jeep, with Shane next in his. Dale was next in the RV, with Jacqui tending to Jim in the back.

Daryl brought up the rear in the SUV with the trailer reattached to the back carrying Merle's, now Daryl's, motorcycle. Sara was in the passenger seat. Merle fell asleep in the back seat almost as soon as they drove out of camp. He slept through the stop when Jim insisted he be left behind. He roused slightly as Daryl returned the remaining morphine to his pack, seeing it and understanding what it meant, but quickly went back to sleep. He was barely awake as they arrived at the CDC and leaned heavily on T-dog as they approached the building. Daryl had Sara by the hand, as the situation became desperate, Daryl hauled her up to his back. But then the door opened, flooding the area with electric light.

Inside he came awake quickly when the doctor stuck a needle into Sara's arm. He glared fiercely as she flinched. The doctor ignored him until Merle sat down for his own blood draw.

"What are you coming off of?" Dr. Jenner asked as he prepped Merle's arm, avoiding the marks from the morphine injections.

"Meth and coke," Merle admitted. "I'm fine."

Dr. Jenner gave him a more thorough exam including checking his blood pressure and heart rate. "Seems OK," he reported.

Merle nodded and yawned widely.

Dr. Jenner stood up, "I'll show you all to where you can clean up and rest. And shower. The kitchen is stocked if you are hungry."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle collapsed onto one of the two beds in the room he and Daryl had claimed along with Sara. Daryl sat on the other as Sara went into the adjoining bathroom and turned on the shower. She emerged a short time later clad in fresh clothes with her hair damp.

"Sure glad you're old enough to take care of that yourself," Merle admitted. "You're next brother." Sara walked to Merle's side as Daryl shut himself into the bathroom. "I'm OK Princess. Just gotta get all the shit outta my system."

"Why did you take them?"

Merle sighed, "Thought it made me feel better. Thought I needed them." He reached over and stroked her hair back. "You stick with Daryl. He'll take care a' you 'til I get back on my feet. Won't be but a few more days."

Daryl finished his shower and took Sara out for dinner. Merle took a long hot shower and changed into clean clothes before injecting more morphine and collapsing back onto the bed. Daryl brought him a plate of food that Merle consumed hungrily before falling back to sleep. He woke again when Daryl stumbled in hours later.

"You drunk?"

"Little," Daryl admitted as he kicked off his shoes and sprawled across his bed.

"Where's Sara?"

"Carol's keepin' all three kids tonight. I just checked on her, she's asleep."

Merle lifted up his head after a moment of silence and smiled to find Daryl passed out. He fell back to sleep and slept straight through.

*x*x*x*x*x*

"Come on man, we gotta go," T-dog grabbed Merle's arm and yanked him upright in bed.

"Wasgoinon," Merle groaned.

"Building's gonna blow, we gotta move!" T-dog grabbed the packs lying next to the bathroom then yanked Merle's arm over his shoulder.

"Where's my brother? My girl?"

"Upstairs," T-dog half carried, half dragged Merle down the hallway, "Can you at least try to run, man?"

Merle focused on getting his feet moving and they made it to the elevator just as Dale and Andrea reached it. "Thought you were already out," T-dog said. They heard a muffled explosion that shuddered through the building. "Oh God, please."

"Not big enough to be the building," Dale said. "Must have blown their way out."

The elevator doors opened and they raced out. As Merle emerged through the shattered glass, his searching eyes found Daryl with Sara in his arms almost to the SUV. Merle followed T-dog to a military built blockade and dropped behind it with Dale and Andrea just before the building exploded.

"What in the hell was that?" Merle gasped.

"Dr. Jenner decided to commit suicide and take the rest of us with him," Dale replied.

Merle looked to T-dog, "Thanks man."

T-dog nodded as he panted for air, "Welcome. But I'm getting' a bit tired of haulin' your heavy ass around."

Merle nodded back and pushed to his feet. They gathered together at the RV. Andrea went inside and shut the door. Dale sighed.

"Where's Jacqui?" Carol asked.

"She stayed. She's gone," Dale replied. "Andrea was going to. Changed her mind."

Lori lowered her face to Carl's hair. Carol cuddled Sophia closer.

"We need to get out of the city," Shane said.

"Still low on gas," T-dog replied. "Van's almost dry."

Rick nodded, "We'll siphon what we can from the military vehicles but I think it's time to leave some of ours behind. We'll gather what we can, gas, supplies then head for Fort Benning." A walker moaned nearby, but seemed intent on the fire. "We need to move fast."

They managed to find gas for the RV, Carol's Jeep, Glenn's pickup, and the Dixon's SUV. The other vehicles were abandoned. Shane joined Dale and Andrea in the RV, Rick drove the Cherokee with Lori, Carl, Carol, and Sophia. Glenn drove the pickup with T-dog in the passenger seat. Daryl again brought up the rear with Sara and Merle.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_But you only need the light when it's burning low  
Only miss the sun when it starts to snow  
Only know you love her when you let her go_

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low  
Only hate the road when you're missin' home  
Only know you love her when you let her go  
_  
__*x*x*x*x*x*_

Blackness.

Daryl, leaning over into his face, calling his name, slapping his cheeks.

Silence.

T-dog practically laying on top of him, holding him down. Fighting against his grip. Screaming at him. Calling him every name he could think of.

Nothing.

Shane holding him in a choke hold as Rick held his arms down. Daryl coming in and injecting something into his arm.

Blackness.

Silence.

Nothing.

Merle groaned. Every fiber in his body hurt. He forced his eyes open. The room was lit by sunlight streaming through a window. He was sprawled on a mattress one the floor of what looked like a small office. He grumbled.

"She's fine," a voice said hoarsely. "She's with Daryl."

"What?"

Andrea leaned into his line of sight, "Are you really awake this time?'

"Think so. What did you say?" Merle pushed upright.

Andrea handed him a bottle of water that was remarkably cool, "Every time you woke up you asked about Sara. I said she's fine. She's outside with Daryl."

"Woke up? What's goin' on?"

"You've been real sick. Out of it. Few days now. Withdrawal combined with an infection in your… wound," Andrea explained. "We're in a fire station just outside of Atlanta."

"Why you here with me?" Merle asked.

"You needed us. Been taking shifts," Andrea replied. "But mostly me. I've been through this before. Fiancé. Twice, because neither of us had enough fun the first time around. Seems like you're coming out of it."

"Where's he now?"

"Don't have a clue," Andrea sighed, "When he chose the drugs for the third time I gave back the ring and walked away."

"Smart decision," Merle groaned as he struggled to his feet. "S'er a place to take a piss?"

Andrea handed him a urinal. Merle scoffed at her and Andrea smirked, "How do you think you've been doing it?" He glared. "There's a locker room downstairs. With running water. No offense but you seriously need a shower."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Outside of the office, there were two lines of bunks along the outer walls. Each showed signs of recent use. Andrea helped Merle descend the stairs down into the large open area of the fire hall.

"Locker room is back here," Andrea led him by a kitchen where Merle could see their supplies stacked up. "I'll be out here. Yell if you need help."

In the locker room, Merle unwrapped his arm and looked at the stump. It finally looked like it was healing. He stripped out of the sweat soaked and stinking clothing and stepped into a shower stall. The water started icy cold but slowly heated to lukewarm. Merle scrubbed himself from head to toe twice. He dried off, then stood with a towel wrapped around his waist, staring into the mirror. He looked haggard, tired… old. With a heavy sigh, he dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, rewrapped his arm, and emerged.

Andrea was sitting in the kitchen staring off into space. Merle cleared his throat to break her trance. She turned and looked at him, an expression of deep grief on her face.

"I am sorry 'bout Amy," Merle said. She sighed and wiped her face with her hands. "Were you really goin' to just stay there and die?"

"Yeah. Didn't see any point in going on. Still don't. Jenner practically said there was nothing left for us anywhere."

"'Course there is," Merle argued. "We make our own way. Forge our own path through this hell. Livin' ain't ever been easy. Suicide is the coward's way out. And you ain't no coward."

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Staring at the ceiling in the dark  
Same old empty feeling in your heart  
'Cause love comes slow and it goes so fast_

Well you see her when you fall asleep  
But never to touch and never to keep  
'Cause you loved her too much  
And you dived too deep  


*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle stepped out of the building and stood blinking in the bright sunlight. The heat hit him like a punch. As he stood, adjusting to the intensity of both, Glenn crept by. He was clad only in a pair of cut-off jeans and was obviously wet. He grinned at Merle then put a finger to his lips. Merle stared as Glenn snuck to the corner and peeked around. Then he stood back with a huge grin on his face. A second later Carl raced around the corner, looking back over his shoulder. Glenn scooped him up with a roar. Carl shrieked in surprise and started to struggle. Glenn carried him away. Merle followed out of curiosity.

"Dad, help," Carl cried as he laughed hysterically.

"Nope," Rick replied as he advanced to Merle. "You got yourself into this." Merle watched as Glenn carried Carl, who was also only clad in shorts, down to a small stream and with a yell, tossed the boy in.

"What's that about?" Merle asked.

"Carl dumped a bucket of stream water over Glenn's head," Rick explained. "It's really cold."

Merle looked around the area. The RV was parked in front of the station, Shane was perched on top with a rifle. Several fire trucks created a makeshift barrier to one side. Off to the other side was a small paved area with a grill where T-dog was cooking two large birds. Daryl was standing with him, smoking a cigarette. Merle walked towards them. As he cleared the building, he saw Carol and Lori sitting on chairs near a small depression in the ground where Sara and Sophia were playing in water. Not too far away stood an antique hand pump on a wagon.

"What's that?" Merle asked again.

Rick grinned, "Kids were playing in the stream but like I said it was really cold. This place had the pump on display but we were able to get it working. Filled the tanks so we could shower. And Shane and I dug out that area and lined it with one of those old fashioned jump nets. Filled it with stream water. Sun heated the water a bit."

"So it's a kiddie pool," Merle said.

"Essentially."

Merle walked over to the grill and his brother.

"Well look who's back among the living," T-dog greeted.

Merle nodded and locked eyes with his brother. No words were needed. "Can I get a puff of that?" Merle asked. Daryl nodded and handed over the cigarette. Merle took a long drag and handed it back.

"Well Mr. Dixon," Dale walked up. "You certainly look better."

Merle snorted, "Better than what?"

"Dead, I guess," Dale replied. "Daryl it's been two hours."

Daryl nodded and handed the cigarette back to Merle. He picked up a bottle of sunblock and walked over to the 'kiddie pool'.

"Two hours?" Merle asked.

Daryl shook the bottle, "Says to reapply every two hours if child is swimmin'. C'mon, Lil' Bit."

Sara sighed but stood up and Daryl grasped her under the arms to lift her out of the pool. Glenn and Carl were returning and both jumped back into the water, splashing Sophia, Carol, and Lori. Merle stooped down to face Sara. She smiled at him. She was wearing a loose fitting tank top and a pair of shorts that he didn't recognize. Daryl wrapped a towel around Sara and dried her off so he could slather her with the sunblock.

"Geese are done," T-dog said as he walked over and climbed down into the pool to cool off.

"Geese?" Merle asked.

"Walked right up like they was deliverin' themselves for supper. I was happy to oblige," Daryl replied. He finished applying the sunblock and wiped his hands on the towel before swinging Sara up and back into the water.

*x*x*x*x*x*

They all gathered in the grill area to eat supper. Shane had climbed down from his perch. Andrea had emerged from the station house. Merle ate like a starving man but quickly filled up.

Rick glanced around as they sated their appetites. "We're going to have to get back on the road tomorrow. Food's running low. We'll fill up everything we can from the stream before we go." He met Merle's gaze and Merle nodded to him.

"How'd you guys get that old pump workin'," Merle asked.

"Sara did it," Rick replied. "She's gifted when it comes to mechanical and electronic stuff."

"Really?" Merle nudged the little girl at his side. She grinned at him.

"Yeah," Shane responded. It was the first time he'd spoken since joining them. "I have a… well had a toaster that she took apart and put back together. After that it would pop the toast up as high as the second floor window." He grinned slyly. "Used it as an icebreaker for those awkward mornings after."

"Mornings after what?" Sophia asked.

"Ahh… ask me again when you're older," Shane answered. "Anyway it was fun. Until we tried those toaster pastry things in it. Had that shit smeared on my ceiling for weeks." Carl and Sara laughed at the memory.

"It didn't occur to you to clean it," Lori laughed.

"You ever tried to clean whatever that crap is inside those things off of a ceiling?" Shane retorted. "It ain't easy. Stuff is one part strawberry, five parts glue."

"Yuck," Lori shuddered.

"Yum," Carl retorted.

"Hey is that what happened to our coffee pot," Lori asked.

"No Carl happened to our coffee pot," Rick replied. "That's why it never worked again."

"It worked," Carl protested.

Rick snorted, "Yeah it worked. You even got a hot shower with your morning coffee." He laughed and the others joined in.

*x*x*x*x*x*

The sun sank low in the sky. The kids were obviously tired. Sara was almost asleep leaning against Daryl's thigh. Lori met Carol's eyes and Carol nodded.

"I think we'll take the kids in," Lori said. Carl and Sophia 'aww'ed. "Come on, it's been a long day." Daryl started to lift Sara but Lori walked over and extended her arms. "I'll take her."

Sara settled into Lori's arms but whined, "I'm not tired." Lori soothed her as Carol guided Sophia and Carl inside. Merle raised his eyebrows at her tone.

"She only does that if she's really tired," Shane said softly. "Or sick."

Merle glanced around at the group, "Wanna say thanks. None of y'all owed me nothin'. I'm grateful for what you done. Takin' care a'me." He looked from eye to eye, getting a nod from each. He reached over absently and flicked Daryl's thumbnail out of his mouth. "I should be fine now. Anythin' I missed while I's out?"

Rick shook his head, "It's been quiet here. Only a few straggling walkers coming out of the city in this direction. With the water supply it would be perfect. But there's no food here. And I guess it won't be long until the walkers in the city start wandering. Fort Benning is our next best shot."

*x*x*x*x*x*

The sun sank down below the horizon and the group moved inside. Merle realized that the large rolling garage door had been reinforced and secured down. After they moved inside, Rick and T-dog moved a set of lockers in front of the main door. It was a relatively safe place. The first floor was locked up tight, while the second floor windows were all cracked to allow some of the night breeze in.

Upstairs, the kids had all been changed into nightclothes and were sound asleep. Sara was in the far corner bottom bunk clad in a long t-shirt. Daryl had claimed the next set of bunks, so he climbed to the top one so Merle could take the bottom. Rick had the next bunk, which he'd moved closer to his son's with Lori scooted in from the other side. The others were scattered around. Everyone had their own except for Carol and Sophia who slept spooned together.

Merle gently covered Sara with the soft fleece blanket. She was sprawled out on her stomach, far different from the tight ball Merle was used to.

"She's been sleepin' like that," Daryl whispered as though he read Merle's mind. "Guess she's finally relaxin'."

Merle nodded and stretched out on his bunk. "You done good baby brother. Took good care of her. Proud of yah."

"Wasn't hard. Ain't like I had to change diapers or nothin'. She's a good kid. Does what you tell her with no fussin'. Dint' gimme no trouble."

"Still," Merle kicked the bunk above him gently. "Lemme be proud." He glanced over and saw Rick watching them interact. "What?"

Rick shook his head but smiled.

Merle huffed and shifted onto his side, turning his back to Rick.

Shane sat watch in one window. He stared at Lori who was sleeping with one hand on her son's back. He rubbed at the scratches she'd left on his neck back at the CDC. He stared daggers into Rick's still form. Even directed his fury to the Dixon brothers where they slept keeping close to Sara. When Daryl roused, sensing his gaze, Shane turned his attention back out the window. The night was cloudless. In the bright moonlight he watched a single walker wander through the yard. It stumbled and fell into the kiddie pool where it thrashed around a bit before crawling forward out of the water. It approached the fire hall but Shane didn't react. Suddenly the crossbow fired, dropping the walker before he could reach the grill area. Shane looked over and saw Daryl at the next window.

"If you're gonna fall asleep, wake somebody for watch," Daryl growled softly.

"Why don't you go back to babysitting, boy," Shane retorted.

Daryl started to respond then stopped. Shane glanced over. Sara was sitting up in bed staring at the two of them. Shane recognized her mother's worried expression on her face so he walked over to her. "What's wrong Sara?"

"What's wrong with you?" she responded quietly.

Shane looked away from the intensity of her gaze. "Nothin'," he snapped.

Sara stood up and walked over to Daryl, "I have to pee." Daryl nodded and took her by the hand to lead her downstairs to the bathroom.

Rick watched them go, then looked over to Shane. Shane saw Rick looking and turned his back to go back to the window. Rick realized Merle was also awake and watching.

A few minutes later Daryl returned, carrying Sara in his arms. He laid her down gently, covered her with the blanket and tucked the stuffed dog into her arms. He climbed back up to his bunk but lay awake until T-dog took over watch from Shane.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Well you only need the light when it's burning low  
Only miss the sun when it starts to snow  
Only know you love her when you let her go_

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low  
Only hate the road when you're missin' home  
Only know you love her when you let her go

And you let her go

_And you let her go _

_Will you let her go?_

*x*x*x*x*x*

AN – I know nothing about withdrawal symptoms beyond what I could find thru google. Besides Merle's a tough son of a bitch. And nobody can take down a Dixon, but a Dixon.


	5. Chapter 5

She Stayed – 5 – Adjusting

**The Walking Dead and all recognized characters and situations belong to AMC, the writers, producers, creators, and actors. **

**Short. Filler. **

*x*x*x*x*x*

Rick was up with the sun the next morning. He quietly crept from his bunk, giving Dale a nod where he was on watch in the window, and went down to the locker room. He showered quickly in the cold water and dressed. By the time the sun cleared the horizon, he was studying a map spread out on the front of Carol's Jeep. A soft breeze blew. Just enough to ruffle the map and force him to hold the corners down. He stared down at the roads, branching off in different directions, and he sighed heavily.

"You look like a man with the weight of the world on your back," Merle said as he approached. "What's on your mind, Officer Friendly?"

"You know, if we're gonna try this, you could start callin' me Rick."

"Fine, Rick. Would prefer you didn't call me Racist Asshole in front of Princess anyway."

"Deal," Rick nodded.

"So?"

"What?"

"Speak man, what's got you so tense?" Merle laid his hand on one corner of the map to hold it in place.

Rick heard the echo of Shane's voice 'speak' from that day so long ago. He looked at Merle and vented, "Well let's see. There's the fact that the people I took us to for help tried to blow us up. There's the fact that the place I took us to is over a hundred miles away from our next best shot. Not that I really think any place is ever going to be truly safe. There's the fact that everyone here is looking to me to lead and I'm not sure I'm up for the challenge. Oh and there's the fact that we're all already infected with whatever this illness is."

Merle stared at him wide-eyed, "What?"

"Shit," Rick cursed. "Jenner told me just before we got out. Whatever this virus or whatever it is, we've all got it. Dormant I guess."

"Until we die," Merle said.

Rick nodded, "I haven't told anyone else. Not sure why I told you."

Merle grinned, "I must have onna'dem trustworthy faces."

"Yeah, I'm sure that's it."

Merle sobered, "You's right, to not tell the others. They don't need to carry that wit'em. We just need to be prepared to deal with things. As for the other shit, well the CDC was closest. Best shot for Jim, we thought. We'll head for Fort Benning, we gotta head for somewhere. As for lookin' to you, who else we gonna look to. Shane? Hothead bastard would sacrifice any onna us to serve his interests. Dale? Or maybe me? Think anyone except for Daryl would follow me across a damn street? Sorry pal, tag, you're it."

Rick sighed and nodded, "Yeah. I'm it. So I think we should stick to the highway." He traced a line from their location all the way to the military base.

"Well then that's what we'll do."

Shane emerged from the fire hall and saw them examining the map. He stalked over, "Sorry to break up this male bonding session but everyone's awake. Breakfast will be ready in ten. Ain't much but it'll do."

Merle stepped back, "Guess I'll go pack my shit." He gave Rick a half assed salute and left.

Shane watched him go then rounded on Rick, "Got yourself a new best friend now? Seems like a good drinkin' buddy. Hell if you ever decide to start shootin' up, you're all set too."

Rick pushed up into Shane's face, "You need to cool down. Now. Merle is a violent, arrogant, no good son of a bitch. But he is part of this group. He's got Sara. So we play nice."

"Whose fault is that?" Shane snarled. "You practically handed her over to him on a platter."

"And you weren't standing right there? You could've stepped up and said you'd take her, Uncle Shane. No, you just stood back, expecting me to do it. Merle isn't going to hurt her. Hell she's probably safer than any of us since he's claimed her as his own. She stayed with him. Saved him. To a man like Merle that means more than anything else ever could. Binds her to him almost as strong as blood would. Hell, Daryl's already taking good care of her. I get them. Especially Merle. He's a lot like Jack. You snap your fingers at him and bark out an order, he's going to resist. Get all defensive like a cornered animal. But if you talk respectfully, explain why you need something done, he'll move heaven and earth to get it done for you. We need him. His strength and his abilities. So. We. Play. Nice."

"Well it sounds like you have it all figured out," Shane shrugged and walked away.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Sara sat in between Andrea's knees as the woman brushed her hair and started braiding it. Daryl hovered over her shoulder watching the actions. Andrea smiled at him and started the braid over, "Start at the top of her head, twine it through your fingers, and as you braid down, you work in the rest of the hair. Get down to the end and put one of these elastics on. And voila, you have a slightly crooked French braid."

"Thank you," Sara said.

"You are welcome." Andrea looked up as Merle entered the hall. "If it's OK, I'd like to ride with you three for a while today." Dale stared in shock.

"I want to take the bike today," Daryl said. "Nice day, open road, give me a chance to get use'ta it."

Andrea nodded, "So it's just us then." She looked to Merle, the question in her eyes.

Merle shrugged, "Works for me sweet… tee." He cleared his throat. "You can drive. I'm still kinda beat."

"I can…" Daryl started.

"No," Merle shook his head. "It's covered. You ride."

"Breakfast is ready," Lori said from the kitchen doorway. "We've got powdered eggs and spam, breakfast of champions."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Andrea steered the Dixon's SUV behind Dale's RV. Rick followed with Lori, Carol, Carl, and Sophia. Daryl led the way on Merle's motorcycle. Sara was in the passenger seat with Merle sprawled across the back. Before they left, Daryl had rigged the seatbelt so that it didn't cut Sara across the throat.

"So," Andrea said. "Sara what's your favorite subject in school?"

"What are you doin'?" Merle snorted.

"Making conversation," Andrea replied. "It's what people do."

"Literature," Sara answered the question. "I love to read."

"Did you go to school with Carl?"

"No," Sara shook her head. "I went to a private school after my mom died." She quickly changed the subject, "What did you do before?"

"I was a lawyer."

Sara blinked and looked at her, "What kind?"

"Civil rights, why?"

Merle snickered, "Her daddy's a cop. That makes lawyers like you the enemy."

"No," Andrea shook her head.

"Yes," Sara nodded. "Well, not really. Defense lawyers who defend clients they know are guilty but get them off on a loophole so they can go out and commit other crimes are the enemy." She obviously was quoting someone.

Andrea shook her head, "How old are you anyway?"

"Eleven," Merle and Sara answered together.

"Sure, eleven going on forty three," Andrea laughed. Silence fell for a long moment. "So what's your favorite book?"

Merle groaned.

Late-afternoon they found a gas station convenience store along the highway and stopped. The gas tanks had been drained dry and the store itself ransacked and emptied. But it was a roof and three walls, the front wall of glass long since shattered and gone. They pulled the RV up close to the front and the two SUV's on either end made a makeshift barrier. They lit a few lanterns and spread out on the floor. They ate what little they had and settled in as night fell.

Rick sat on the front sidewalk in one of the folding chairs a rifle in his hands. He watched the sky darken as clouds covered the moon and stars. Lightning flashed in the distance. Thunder rolled.

"Storm rollin' in," Merle said as he emerged from the store.

"Yeah," Rick nodded, "Looks like a big one. Maybe disburse some of this heat."

Merle put a cigarette into his mouth and lit it, using his body to shield the match from the wind.

"Can't sleep?" Rick asked.

"Slept too long today," Merle replied. "Even with all the chatter." He blew out a long stream of smoke.

Rick smiled, "Sara chattering?"

"Mostly Andrea. Tryin' to engage Sara in conversation." Merle sighed and rubbed the stump of his arm.

"Hurtin'?"

"Yeah. Cuttin' down the morphine slowly. Pain's a bitch though."

Rick sighed, "I cannot imagine."

Lightning struck a tree across the field, lit up the entire sky as thunder ripped the night. A child's cry came from inside, a feminine voice responded soothingly. Merle glanced in. His gaze found Daryl's eyes, half closed but alert. Sara was next to him, peaceful but awake. Carol was calming Sophia. The wind whipped up to a frenzy and lightning struck another tree, splitting it to the ground with a tremendous sound. Sophia screamed. Everyone was moving, getting up. Daryl came out with Sara by the hand.

"Stay under the overhang, Lil' Bit," Daryl ordered. "She ain't afraid," he said in quiet admiration.

"Not of much of anything," Rick replied as they watched her stare out into the storm. "'Cept for snakes. Has been since she was four and a former friend of Carl's chased her with a dead one."

"Former friend?" Merle asked.

"Yeah. Sorta ended when Carl punched him in the nose for chasin' Sara around with a dead copperhead."

Merle chuckled as Lori and Carl came to the entrance, "Six years old and already defendin' his girl."

"Got in trouble for it," Carl looked up to his mother who wrapped her arms around him and pulled him back against her.

"Would you do it again?"

"Absolutely."

Lori sighed and rolled her eyes, "Sara come back away from there you're going to get wet."

Sara walked over to them as the storm roared overhead. Carl reached out and took her hand. Lori pulled her in to hold them both. She took a deep breath of the cool air, "Hate storms like this, but God that breeze feels good." Sara shivered. "Come on, let's get you two settled. It's late."

Sara looked to Merle, who nodded to her. She let Lori lead her back inside. Lori pulled the kids' sleeping bags closer together so that she could cover them both with Sara's fleece blanket. She sat with them, brushing both of their hair, rubbing Sara's back until they both fell asleep as the storm was moving away.

"Maybe she's figurin' it out," Merle whispered.

"What?" Rick asked.

"That she's the only momma that girl's been around for a long while," Merle replied softly.

Rick shifted uncomfortably.

"What else we need to know 'bout her?" Daryl asked to break the tension. "Got afraid of snakes. Anythin' else?"

Rick nodded, "Not great with heights after her leap off the roof that night."

Merle blew out a breath of air, "Made her jump to me. On'at rooftop. Ten feet. She never hesitated."

Rick shrugged, "Knew you wouldn't drop her. She's a good judge of character. Sees the truth in a man's soul. Just like Savannah. Jack called them both 'human lie detectors'."

"Savannah?"

"Yeah. Savannah and Augusta. Two true southern belles." Rick grinned broadly. "Gussie moved out west as soon as she could. Came back when Savvy died. Stayed with Sara and Jack for a few months, then left again. Last I heard her and her girlfriend, significant other, whatever were livin' in California. I don't remember where. Savvy's parents died in a car wreck about four years ago."

"Jack got family?"

"Piece of shit father that Jack cut out of his life as soon as he turned eighteen. Assume he's spent the rest of his days in the trailer park. Hell, son of a bitch may still be there. Older sister. No idea where she is. Younger brother died in a bar fight just after Sara was born." Rick rubbed his face. "Sara is smart. Clever. Teach her something once and she's got it for life. She's a great shot. Jack and Shane started taking her to the range when she was five. Shane's a certified instructor."

"Taught her well," Merle said. "Saw that first hand on the rooftop in Atlanta. Anythin' else?"

"Yeah, stop picking her up all the time. Took a long time for Jack to break Shane and me of that habit. I know she's small for her age and sometimes it's easier to just grab her and go, but she will get frustrated with you doing it."

"I haven't been," Merle said.

"I have," Daryl admitted with a shrug. "She's little."

"Yeah but she's not a toddler." Rick yawned. Daryl did too.

Merle reached over and took the rifle from Rick, "Go get some sleep. You too little brother. I got this." He watched Rick go in and curl up with Lori. Daryl pulled his sleeping bag over to Sara and stretched out.

T-dog got up and walked out, "Short storm."

"Ain't over yet," Merle replied.

"Got another one of those?"

Merle tossed him the pack of cigarettes. "We're gonna hafta find someone who knows how to grow tobacco. Ain't gonna be pleasant when we all go through nicotine withdrawal."

Thunder rolled again.

*x*x*x*x*x*

The next day was just as hot as the day before. Andrea rode in the RV, leaving Merle to drive with Sara.

"What should we talk about today?" Merle asked.

"Do we have to talk?" Sara replied. "Miss Andrea is nice but…"

"All talked out?"

"After the first hour," Sara smiled.

Merle chuckled. He glanced over to see that Sara had the little stuffed dog in her hands. "So what's his name?"

"Whose?"

"The dog."

"I don't know. I didn't ask Eliza." She looked down at the fluffy brown and white dog.

"He's yours now, you should name him," he said. "You ever have a dog? A real one?"

She nodded, "My dad was a K9 handler when I was born. A big German named Judge. When I came home from the hospital, Judge slept under my crib every night. Dad said whenever I would make a sound, even if I wasn't crying, Judge would go get him."

"Sounds like a good dog," Merle nodded. "Real good dog. You should call this one Judge. Good way to remember him."

She smiled, "Yeah."

*x*x*x*x*x*


	6. Chapter 6

**She Stayed – 6 – Within Reach**

**The Walking Dead, all recognized characters, dialog, and situations belong to AMC, the creators, writers, and actors. AU version of "What Lies Ahead". Song is "Where I Stood" l****yrics by Higgins, Melissa Morrison © Chrysalis Music Group.**

_***x*x*x*x*x* **_

_**I don't know what I've done  
Or if I like what I've begun  
But something told me to run  
And honey you know me it's all or none  
There were sounds in my head  
Little voices whispering  
That I should go and this should end  
Oh and I found myself listening**_

_***x*x*x*x*x* **_

They hit the traffic snarl. Daryl was leading the way through when the RV's radiator hose snapped and they were all forced to stop. They started to scatter through the abandoned vehicles to gather supplies.

Merle hefted an empty backpack to his right shoulder, leaving his left hand free for a weapon. Daryl started walking, his crossbow on his back. He held out one hand, fingers spread. Sara trotted forward until she caught up to him and grasped his hand. Merle joined them, with T-dog close behind.

"We need to see if we can find you some toys," T-dog teased Sara. "A doll or something."

"I want a crossbow," Sara replied, sending the men into laughter.

"Maybe when you're growed up," Daryl replied. "For now it's too hard."

She scowled at him, "Why?"

Daryl stopped and dropped to one knee to come to her eye level, "This is a Horton Scout 125. 125 means it takes a hundred twenty five pounds of pull to draw it. So it's too hard. You're a good shot with the gun so that's your weapon. And we'll train some more with the knife. OK?"

Sara nodded.

"Let's go see if we can find somethin' for you to take apart," Daryl stood up and led her further into the traffic jam.

T-dog watched them, "You know she ain't never gonna weigh a buck twenty five, even if we fed her nothin' but junk and sugar every day for the next twenty years."

"Yeah," Merle nodded. "She was a preemie."

T-dog laughed, "So was I, man."

*x*x*x*x*x*

They began to check cars for gas and supplies. Merle glanced back to the RV. He lifted his hand and shaded his eyes. Saw Dale flat on the vehicle's roof.

"Shit," Merle cursed. "T-dog!" he hissed, "We got trouble." He whistled, one long shrill sound. T-dog turned and slammed his arm into the ragged edge of the car door next to him, slicing it open.

Daryl whirled and dropped the bag he was filling with food out of a station wagon. "Lil' Bit, c'mere, we got trouble." He whistled back as she slid across the front seat where she'd been emptying the glove compartment. He scooped her up in one arm and started toward Merle. He was almost to his brother when he saw the first walker. Then heard the echoing moan of the rest. Sara gasped as she took in the mass of walkers.

T-dog stumbled around a truck, clutching his arm, trying to stem the stream of blood. Daryl dropped Sara to her feet and grabbed him, quickly tying off his arm, using his bandana as a tourniquet.

"Down," Merle commanded, "Under."

Daryl shoved Sara down under the truck and followed quickly. Sliding in next to her as the first walker reached them. Merle shoved his knife into its head and dropped it next to the truck then shoved T-dog under a van. Merle killed two more walkers, dropping them as more camouflage before rolling under the van. He gripped T-dog's uninjured arm for a second then lifted his finger to his lips. Daryl nodded and shifted closer to Sara. She clutched at him.

In silence they watched as the walkers' feet staggered by the vehicles. As the moans resonated around them.

Then they heard Sophia shriek. Merle jerked and banged his head on the van's undercarriage. T-dog slammed his hand over Merle's mouth to muffle the curses. Merle swallowed hard and nodded. T-dog let go and looked to Daryl who held his hand flat and pushed it down to the street even as they heard Sophia's screams fading off into the distance.

Daryl crept out cautiously, checking around to confirm the walkers were far enough away before he gestured for Sara to come to him. T-dog struggled to his feet with Merle's help. They ran back up the highway. Daryl had Sara by the hand.

"What happened?" Merle demanded as T-dog staggered to a car and sat on the bumper.

"Sophia got caught by a straggler, spooked her and she ran," Glenn explained.

"Rick went after her," Shane said.

Merle looked to where Lori held Carol and clenched his jaw. They stood around waiting. Dale bandaged T-dog's arm. Daryl stood next to Sara and Carl sitting on the tailgate of their SUV. Carol cried out as Rick reappeared alone.

"What happened?" Shane demanded.

"She's not here?" Rick cursed low under his breath. "I had to leave her."

"Leave her?" Carol sobbed.

"There were too many," Rick explained. "I couldn't take her and take care of them. I left her hiding but when I went back she was gone. Merle, Daryl, you two can track right?"

Daryl nodded and started to lift Sara down but Lori stepped over, "I've got her. Go." Daryl looked to Merle then crossed to Rick.

"She doesn't move outta your reach," Merle growled low to Lori then he followed Daryl.

Lori sat down between the kids and pulled them close to her. "It's going to be OK. They'll find her." Carl nuzzled his mother. Sara leaned against her and Lori kissed the top of her head.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Cause I don't know who I am, who I am without you  
All I know is that I should  
And I don't know if I could stand another hand upon you  
All I know is that I should  
Cause she will love you more than I could  
She who dares to stand where I stood  
__*x*x*x*x*x* _

Daryl tracked Sophia away from the creek, but lost the trail when she wandered back into the water. Merle and Rick helped him search the banks but they couldn't find any sign of her.

"We're losing daylight," Daryl sighed.

Rick dropped into a crouch, "I can't believe this. Why didn't she wait for me?"

"She was scared," Daryl said.

"Better question is why in the hell was she able to run in the first place," Merle snarled. "Who was with her?"

Rick shook his head, "She was under a car by herself. We were looking through the vehicles."

"So were we," Merle retorted. "Sara wasn't outta our reach for a second."

Rick lurched to his feet, "Hey, we are doing the best we can. Most of us aren't used to living like this."

"Well this is how the world is now," Merle stepped forward, "Adjust. Or we're gonna end up buryin' them."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Carol stood on the roadside staring out into the darkness. Merle stood watching her. Daryl and Sara were in the back of the SUV. They'd lowered the back seat and spread the sleeping bags in the resulting space. The tailgate was up but the window was open, letting the breeze flow in.

"Why did she run?" Sara whispered.

Daryl glanced over, "She was scared."

"I know, but why did she run away from everyone?"

"Dunno," Daryl shrugged. "Guess she panicked. Didn't think."

"When you're the most scared, that's when you need to think the most," Sara replied.

Daryl sighed, "Guess no one taught her that."

"Hey, you two," Merle stuck his head in the window. "'Nuff chatter. Gotta big day tomorrow. Early start. You need to go to sleep."

Sara yawned and rubbed her eye, "You need to sleep too."

"I will Princess. Once Rick gets up for watch," Merle reached in and stroked her hair. Then he slipped away from the SUV to resume patrolling the vehicles.

"Don't worry, Lil' Bit, we'll find her tomorrow," Daryl whispered.

"You think?"

Daryl nodded.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_See I thought love was black and white  
That it was wrong or it was right  
But you ain't leaving without a fight  
And I think I am just as torn inside  
__*x*x*x*x*x* _

They were up with the sunrise. After a quick breakfast, they packed up supplies to begin the search. Merle loaded a few snack bars and bottles of water into Sara's backpack and Daryl helped her slide it onto her shoulders.

"I want to go," Carl was saying as they gathered. "Sara's going."

"Sara's going?" Lori looked to Rick, "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

Merle scowled, "You want Daryl and me trackin', right? Then she goes." He took Sara by the hand and helped her climb up onto the highway barrier. Daryl lifted her down on the other side. They walked down the embankment together and waited for the rest of them. "You stay right with us," Merle ordered Sara. "Right within my reach. Or Daryl's. Always. No wanderin'." She nodded.

*x*x*x*x*x*

It was a very long, hot day. Hour after hour of futile searching. The heat and humidity were oppressive. They were all exhausted and sweaty. They stopped for a rest and water break. Daryl watched Sara. She was doing fine, keeping up, but seemed to be growing tired, so when they started walking again, he caught her under one arm and slung her onto his back. She settled quickly, arms clasped around his neck, legs gripping his back. Merle watched but kept silent. He took point trying to find any sign of Sophia.

Church bells rang off in the distance. They rushed ahead, discussing what the bells could mean but finding only a church of walkers. Daryl let Sara slide to her feet and Lori took her while the men went inside to put down the dead.

"Yo J.C., you takin' requests?" Daryl snapped at the crucifix as the others moved inside.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle was standing at the back of the church as Carol began praying aloud. He grew angry as he listened and stomped out of the church with Sara by the hand. He walked away from Shane and Andrea. Daryl followed.

"You OK Brother?" Daryl asked.

"A bit pissed off, Little Brother," Merle replied. He let go of Sara so he could fish a cigarette out of his pocket. Daryl approached with a lighter and lit it for him. "Thanks."

Sara leaned against Merle's leg. "I thought mothers protected their kids no matter what."

Daryl laid his hand on her head but looked at Merle, "Not all mothers are strong enough or brave enough."

"That's a shitty excuse," Merle growled. "A shitty excuse for 'nother weak bitch who let a man, any man, put his hands on her child. Her daughter. No wonder she's such a timid little thing. She's waitin' for the next man to come along and… hurt her." He shook his head. "We gotta find her. She won't last long on her own." He took a few deep drags on the cigarette then handed it to Daryl.

They stood together until the others emerged from the church. Rick and Shane decided to split off from the group to continue searching around the church while the others went back to the highway.

"I wanna stay too. She's my friend," Carl insisted.

Rick looked to Lori. She nodded and he nodded back.

Shane reached for Sara, "Why don't you stay with us too?" When Sara didn't move away from Merle's side, Shane scowled, "What's wrong Sara? You don't want to come with Uncle Rick and me?"

Merle took Sara's hand, "We'll both stay." He nodded to Daryl. "Daryl'll take the others back to the highway."

"We can take care of her," Shane said.

"She goes, I go," Merle replied. "You don't want me taggin' along, then she and I'll head back with the others."

"It's fine," Rick said. "Besides you're the tracker. We might miss signs. You won't."

Daryl led Lori, Glenn, Carol, and Andrea away from the church. Rick asked for a minute and disappeared back inside. With a glare at Merle, Shane sat down on the steps next to Carl.

Merle nudged Sara, "You wanna go in and pray?"

She shook her head, "I don't think God's listening anymore."

"He's listening. Just sometimes the answer is no," Merle replied. He stroked her hair back where it was pulling free from the braid.

"Isn't there stuff in the bible about the dead walking around?" Carl asked.

"_When there is no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth*,"_ Sara quoted.

"Is that in the bible?"

Sara shook her head as Merle blinked, "No. That's from *George Romero's Dawn of the Dead movie," he glared at Shane. "Not exactly a Disney movie."

"Hey don't look at me," Shane retorted, "That's her father's doing."

"What's her father's doing?" Rick asked as he rejoined them.

"Letting her watch R rated horror movies."

"Oh. Yeah. Well…." Rick winced.

Merle shook his head with a sigh.

Shane grinned as he stood up, "Look on the bright side. She's seen her last one. They won't be making any more."

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Cause I don't know who I am, who I am without you  
All I know is that I should  
And I don't know if I could stand another hand upon you  
All I know is that I should  
Cause she will love you more than I could  
She who dares to stand where I stood  
__*x*x*x*x*x* _

The buck stepped right out into the clearing in front of them. Shane immediately lifted his gun to aim.

"Shane," Rick whispered as Merle reached over and grasped Shane's arm.

Carl took Sara's hand in his and began to move forward, slowly, cautiously. They crept closer and closer to the deer in complete silence.

Rick smiled at Merle and Shane. Merle was smiling broadly at Sara.

A gunshot sliced through the silence.

Carl sprawled back, knocking Sara to the ground. She rolled out from under his shoulder and whirled to face him. As blood began spreading across his abdomen, she pressed both hands down onto the wound. Rick and Merle leapt to their side as Shane stepped over them with his gun raised.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_And I won't be far from where you are if ever you should call  
You meant more to me than anyone I've ever loved at all  
But you taught me how to trust myself  
And so I say to you, this is what I have to do._

Cause I don't know who I am, who I am without you  
All I know is that I should  
And I don't know if I could stand another hand upon you  
All I know is that I should  
Cause she will love you more than I could  
She who dares to stand where I stood  
She who dares to stand where I stood.

*x*x*x*x*x*


	7. Chapter 7

**She Stayed – 7 – Hold on, this is gonna hurt like hell**

**The Walking Dead, all recognized characters, dialog, and situations belong to AMC, the creators, writers, and actors. AU version of "Bloodletting" and "Save the Last One". Song is "Hold On" performed by Sarah McLachlan lyrics by: Carrabba, Christopher Andrew © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC**

**AN – Skips forward as it adds Merle and Sara to the storyline. I didn't want to completely rewrite each episode. So I'd suggest re-watching the episodes then reading if you can.**

**Thanks for the attention and reviews. Not too many people seem to be reading this, but I have my first haters now! Woohoo! Haven't had any since my HP fanfic days. For the others, thank you for the reviews. I hope you continue to enjoy this.**

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Hold on  
Hold on to yourself  
for this is gonna hurt like hell  
Hold on  
Hold on to yourself  
you know that only time will tell_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Running.

They'd been tired before. Almost exhausted. But now they were

Running.

Merle had Sara in his arms, tucked close to his chest. His right arm tucked under her bottom, his left cradling her to him. Running full out behind Rick who carried his son, bleeding out in his arms.

Rick stumbled slightly with a sob and hefted his son higher. "HOW FAR?" he screamed at the man scrambling to follow.

Merle turned when there was no response, "You better keep up you son of a bitch or I will shoot you right here. How far?"

"Half mile," the man gasped. "That way. Hershel. Ask for Hershel."

Rick ran on, Merle followed. They pulled further and further ahead of Shane and the stranger.

"There," Merle panted, "Farmhouse there."

"I see it," Rick replied between gasps. He once again hefted Carl higher in his arms.

They reached the farmhouse and were met by a man who identified himself as Hershel. As they ascended the stairs to the house, Hershel caught sight of Sara. She had blood smeared on her face and clothing. "Is she hurt, too?"

"No," Merle replied. He stooped down and set Sara on her feet. He yanked off his button down shirt and began to wipe at her face and hair. All he managed to do with the sweat soaked flannel was to spread the blood further up into her hair.

"Hi," a sweet young voice greeted. "I'm Beth. I could take her inside and get her cleaned up."

Merle looked up. The teenager smiled and offered her hand to Sara. Merle nodded and pressed for Sara to go with Beth. Shane and Otis finally arrived at the farmhouse. Rick emerged, passing Beth as she led Sara inside.

*x*x*x*x*x*

"Little girl goes missing, you look for her, simple as that," Rick said to Shane. They were sitting in the living room side by side on a couch. Merle stood behind them in the doorway.

Footsteps came down the stairs, "Hi. I'm Jimmy. Just wanted to let you know, Beth put the little girl into the tub for a bath." Merle nodded and the young man started back upstairs.

"Hey, where the hell you think you're goin'?"

Jimmy froze at the anger in Merle's tone. "Uhm. Attic? Beth said there's a box of clothes up there she thinks will fit the little one." He scrambled back up quickly.

Merle let out a long breath.

"Please don't terrify or antagonize the people trying to help us, OK, Racist Asshole?" Rick said.

"I'll try, Officer Friendly."

*x*x*x*x*x*

"I'll go, too," Merle offered as Shane and Otis made plans to run to the school.

"No," Shane shook his head. He lowered his voice, "You stay here. Keep an eye on things. Keep Rick here. We'll be back soon."

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_What is it in me that refuses to believe  
this isn't easier than the real thing  
My love  
you know that you're my best friend  
you know I'd do anything for you  
my love  
let nothing come between us  
my love for you is strong and true_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

"Lori Grimes?" Maggie galloped up to the group and told them about the shooting.

"What about my brother? And the girl?" Daryl demanded as Lori climbed onto the horse.

"They're both fine. No one else was hurt."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Rick and Lori were reeling from the realization that their son's life was in the hands of a veterinarian. Merle stood in the doorway. He'd been wandering around the first floor of the farmhouse, staying out of the way, and glancing repeatedly up the stairs.

"Excuse me," Beth said from the hallway. She stood there with Sara by the hand. Sara was now wearing a blue pair of cargo pants folded up to mid-calf and a cute white t-shirt covered with yellow and blue flowers. Both were slightly big, but fit her well enough. "I was gonna put her in my bed but she doesn't seem to want to stay upstairs." Sara went immediately to Merle and lifted her arms to him. He scooped her up in his arm and she curled against his chest. Beth looked to Lori, "She doesn't talk?"

"Not when she's upset," Lori replied. "She's OK. Thank you."

"Thanks," Merle said. "For the bath and the clothes."

Beth nodded, "Can I get anyone anything to eat? Or drink?"

"Maybe some sandwiches, Bethy," Hershel suggested. "Rick you need to eat something." He walked over to Merle. "Let me take a look at her." Merle turned Sara to face Hershel. "Hello sweetheart. Are you hurt anywhere?" Sara shook her head. "Feel OK?" Sara nodded. "Just feel like being quiet right now? That's OK. You'll talk to us when you're ready. I think she's fine. No sign of shock." Hershel stroked her damp hair back. "Let me know if anything changes. How long since you lost your hand?"

"Not long," Merle replied.

"Traumatic amputation?"

Merle snorted, "That's puttin' it mildly. Got trapped, had to cut it off to get away and save my girl here."

"I should take a look at it," Hershel said.

"Get a lot of amputations in your line a'work?" Merle scoffed. "Thought you just put animals down."

"Well that would put me out of work fairly quickly wouldn't it?"

Lori walked over and extended her arms, "I'll take her. You sit down."

Merle handed Sara over, "Yes ma'am."

Lori sat down and settled Sara on her lap as Merle walked to the other end of the table and allowed Hershel to unwrap and examine the stump. Sara stared up at Lori, "I'm sorry." Hershel glanced over at the sound of her voice.

"For what baby?"

"I didn't see the man with the gun," Sara whispered with tears in her eyes.

"Hey," Rick reached over and rubbed Sara's back, "It was not your fault. None of us saw him. And he didn't see us. It was an accident."

Lori pulled Sara close and rocked back and forth, "It's OK baby girl."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle paced the kitchen floor carrying Sara asleep against his shoulder as Maggie led Glenn and T-dog in. "Hey," Glenn greeted. "Is she OK?"

Merle nodded.

"Sit down let me take a look at that arm," Patricia ordered T-dog.

"Daryl gave us some of your meds," T-dog said as he winced. "Antibiotics from your… issue."

"What were you takin' these for?" Patricia asked as she stitched the wound.

"Clap," Merle replied. Glenn winced with a glance to Sara. Merle sighed, "Can you take her a minute?" Glenn nodded. "Sit down," Merle ordered. Glenn sat and Merle gently lowered Sara onto his lap. They moved slowly and carefully but she still woke up with the change in position. "S'OK, Princess, I just need to take a piss. Sit with Glenn." He started to walk away.

"Where are you goin'?" Maggie asked.

"Outside to take a piss," Merle replied.

Maggie rolled her eyes, "Bathroom is through there, no need to kill the grass."

"Thanks."

Glenn smiled down at Sara, "Somebody sure smells good. Lucky girl must've had a bath." He inhaled the scent of Ivory soap and baby powder. Sara nodded as T-dog winked at her. "She's quiet."

"Lori said it was normal when she's upset," Patricia replied as she tied off the last stitch and began to bandage the wound.

"How close was she?" Glenn asked.

"Close enough to need a bath," Patricia said.

Glenn sighed and kissed the top of Sara's head. They heard the flush of a toilet then water running. Merle emerged from the bathroom, "Can't believe we're in a house with 'lectricity and runnin' water."

"Generator and well," Patricia corrected as she cleaned up the medical supplies. "We'll take the stitches out in a week or so. Until then keep the bandage dry. Keep taking the antibiotics. I need to get back in to the boy."

*x*x*x*x*x*

It was getting later. Carl's condition was deteriorating. Merle was pacing again. Sara was curled on the couch next to T-dog. Glenn was in a chair as was Maggie. Rick and Lori were on the floor.

Merle turned suddenly, "You think you could find this school?" he asked Glenn.

"We going?" Glenn got to his feet.

"They've been gone too long. Somethin' musta gone wrong."

Rick pushed to his feet, "Shane will make it back."

"You wanna bet your son's life on it?" Merle snapped. "It's five miles right? They coulda ran it and gotten back by now. Get a list of what we need."

"It's too late," Hershel said from the doorway.

"What?" Lori cried out.

"We can't wait any longer," Hershel replied. "I have to operate now or we'll lose him. You said you wanted me to try. Do you still?"

Rick nodded with tears in his eyes.

"OK. Maggie I'll need your help," Hershel ordered. "The rest of you get out."

"Anything I can do?" Merle asked.

"You know CPR?"

Merle nodded.

"Come with me. Rest of you outside."

Glenn picked up Sara and carried her out, followed by T-dog ushering Rick and Lori. Merle followed Hershel into the room that was rapidly being transformed into an operating room. Before they could begin, a truck pulled up outside, headlights sweeping across the wall. They all moved outside to find Shane.

As Shane was explaining what happened with Otis, Sara was staring at him. He stammered out his story, then reached to take her from Glenn. She cringed back from him. They stared at each other for a long moment, then Rick stepped between them to hug Shane in gratitude. Sara squirmed to be put down so Glenn lowered her to her feet. She went immediately to Merle to be picked back up. Lori watched her, concern apparent in her face.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Am I in heaven here or am I...  
at the crossroads I am standing  
So now you're sleeping peaceful  
I lie awake and pray  
that you'll be strong tomorrow and we'll  
see another day and we will praise it  
and love the light that brings a smile  
across your face_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

"We should settle in," Hershel said. "Try to get some sleep." The surgery was over. Carl was stable. "I'm going to stay in the parlor on the couch in case Carl needs me tonight. The family room has a comfortable couch. Two recliners."

"I could take the girl up to my room," Beth offered.

Merle shook his head, "No thanks. I've got her." Sara was sound asleep in his arms, her head against his right shoulder.

Rick and Lori were in the room with Carl so it was just Glenn and T-dog in the family room with Merle and Sara. Shane went upstairs to shower, carrying Otis' clothes that Maggie had provided. T-dog immediately claimed one of the recliners. Merle sat down in the other, then discovered that the lever to recline was on his right side.

"Need a hand?" Glenn asked then cringed, "Sorry."

"S'OK," Merle replied, "Looks like I do."

Glenn walked over and pushed the lever back as Merle leaned back. Merle settled Sara against his side. Maggie walked in with a light weight quilt that she spread out over Sara. Merle nodded his thanks as he rubbed Sara's back. A short while later, Shane returned, clad in a massively oversized shirt and set of overalls. His head had been shaved.

"Interestin' look," Merle whispered.

"Bite me," Shane retorted. He shook out one of the blankets Maggie had left and sprawled out on the floor.

Glenn lifted his head from where he lay on the couch, "You want me to take the floor?"

"No," Shane grunted. He shifted onto his side to face the wall. He lay awake for most of the night, staring at nothing. The others were silent, sleeping after the long crazy day.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Oh god if you're out there won't you hear me  
I know that we've never talked before  
oh god the man I love is leaving  
won't you take him when he comes to your door_

Am I in heaven here or am I in hell  
at the crossroads I am standing  
So now you're sleeping peaceful  
I lie awake and pray  
that you'll be strong tomorrow and we'll  
see another day and we will praise it  
and love the light that brings a smile  
across your face...

Hold on  
hold on to yourself  
for this is gonna hurt like hell


	8. Chapter 8

**She Stayed – 8 – Blood of the Covenant**

**The Walking Dead, all recognized characters, dialog, and situations belong to AMC, the creators, writers, and actors. AU version of "Cherokee Rose" and "Chupacabra". Song is "Hey Brother" performed by Avicii - ****Lyrics by: Pournouri, Ash, Pontare, Vincent; Fakir, Salem A.; Bergling, Tim © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, EMI Music Publishing, Universal Music Publishing Group.**

**Title comes from proverb "The Blood of the Covenant is thicker than the water of the womb". Which means (to me) that the bonds created by choice, by need, (or between warriors in battle) are stronger than even the bond to family. May be the origin of 'Blood is thicker than water' which means the opposite. Just your random thought for today.**

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Hey brother, there's an endless road to rediscover  
Hey sister, know the water's sweet but blood is thicker  
Ooooh if the sky comes falling down, for you  
There's nothing in this world I wouldn't do  
__*x*x*x*x*x_*

Mornings on a farm began very early, even when the world outside had ended. Merle woke with the first bird call of the day. He lay still in the recliner with Sara curled against him. The Greene girls crept quietly down the stairs. Patricia was already in the kitchen, drying her tears, and quietly starting breakfast. Sara stirred in Merle's arms as meat began to sizzle in a pan. He smiled at her as she lifted her head. "Good morning, Princess."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Rick stood on the front porch sipping a glass of juice. He watched Merle carry Sara over to the horse corral and set her on the fence. The horses trotted over to greet the newcomers. Beth walked over to them and handed Sara a carrot to feed them. Jimmy followed close behind but kept his distance from Merle. Sara giggled as the horse gently took the piece of carrot from her.

"Never met a little girl yet that didn't love horses," Hershel said as he walked out to Rick. "I want to take another look at… what is Merle's little girl's name? Don't think I got it last night."

"Sara, but she's not Merle's daughter," Rick replied. "It's complicated."

"In my experience, life usually is," Hershel smiled. "And I've also discovered that family is what you make it. Patricia and Otis aren't blood, neither is Jimmy, doesn't make them any less my family. When I married Beth's mother, she already had my stepson Shawn, didn't make him any less my son. You call Shane brother."

"Yeah," Rick nodded.

"Like I said I want to take another look at her, but she seems to be fine. We need to find her some shoes though," Hershel observed. "She shouldn't walk around the farm barefoot though I've fought my whole life to keep my girls from doing it. I think it's in the Irish blood."

"She's got another pair with her things," Rick replied. "The pair she had on yesterday were too blood soaked. I think Patricia is still trying to get them clean though."

"If anyone can, she can." Hershel leaned against the railing.

Maggie came out onto the porch, "Breakfast is ready."

"Oh, uh," Rick started.

Maggie interrupted, "We've got plenty. Well not plenty, but enough to share."

"You know what they say about Southern hospitality. Besides, you need to eat," Hershel added, he waved to Beth and gestured for them to come in. Beth nodded and said something to Merle. He scooped Sara off the fence and tossed her over his shoulder.

"Thank you," Rick said. "I seem to keep saying that."

Merle climbed the steps with Sara slung over one shoulder as she giggled.

"I'll take her upstairs to clean up and change," Beth said.

Merle sat Sara on her feet, "She just put these clothes on last night."

Beth shrugged, "And she slept in them. There's a whole box of stuff I outgrew. Even a few pretty dresses." Sara scowled and Beth laughed, "OK no dresses. And we need to see if any of the shoes fit. Daddy is paranoid about us goin' barefoot outside." She took Sara by the hand and led her inside.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Hershel said grace and Patricia served up slices of ham, scrambled eggs, and fresh biscuits with homemade butter and jam. The group stared at the food then began to devour it. Rick cleared his throat to gain their attention and looked pointedly at each of them. Chastised, they all slowed down.

Lori met Patricia's gaze, "Sorry, it's obviously been awhile since we sat down to a real meal." She poured a glass of apple juice for Sara.

Patricia nodded, "I've started a batch of applesauce. We'll start Carl on that later."

"Thank you," Lori nodded.

_*x*x*x*x*x*_

_Hey brother, do you still believe in one another?  
Hey sister, do you still believe in love I wonder?  
Ooooh if the sky comes falling down, for you  
There's nothing in this world I wouldn't do  
__*x*x*x*x*x* _

Merle stood on the front porch. He looked back as the other men emerged from the house.

"I'm gonna head out," Merle greeted. "See if I can find any sign of Sophia along the creek bed."

"You should wait," Glenn replied. "She may have come back to the highway last night. At least wait for Daryl."

"You shouldn't go alone," T-dog added. "If you won't wait, I'll go with you."

"I'm better off alone," Merle said.

Rick shook his head, "No. One of us will go with you."

"Fine," Merle nodded. "If you, T-dog, or Shane can make it to the fence line and back without stoppin' or passin' out, you can go with me." The injured and weakened men exchanged looks. Rick sighed heavily and wiped his pale face with his hands.

"I could," Glenn protested.

"Yeah and since you're the only one who can, you gotta stay here at least 'til the others show up," Merle said. "I'm better off alone," he repeated. "If the others found her, fire two shots into the air. I'll hear and come back."

"Are you sure about this?" Rick asked.

"Yeah. You said it yourself, girl goes missin' you look for her."

"I'll get Maggie to pack up some food and water for you," Hershel said.

"I just ate," Merle protested.

"Yes, but if you find the girl, odds are good she won't have."

"Good point. Thanks."

Merle emerged from the bathroom and found Maggie packing food, water, and first aid supplies into Sara's backpack. She looked up, "Patricia is cleanin' yours, there's blood on the strap. Sara said you could take hers. It's a good pack, sturdy."

"My dad got it for me," Sara said. She was sitting at the end of the table with a stack of photographs in her hands. Lori was sitting next to her. "I want to go with you."

"No," Merle shook his head. "You ain't got shoes. I ain't carryin' you all over this county."

"Beth's shoes were all too big," Lori said. "She's got Cinderella feet like her mom." She stroked Sara's back. "Besides I need you to stay here and help me keep Carl occupied. I'm sure there are some games or books around."

"We've all got jobs to do," Maggie said as she handed Merle the pack. "And yes there are tons of books all over the house and board games in the family room closet."

"Thanks," Merle said.

Maggie nodded as she sat down next to Sara, "Who are they?"

"Mom and Dad," Sara replied, showing Maggie the photo.

"You look like your mom," Maggie smiled. "So do I."

Merle took the photo and looked at the happy couple holding a younger Sara. Lori took the next photo from Sara and smiled. "I remember this one. It was your fourth birthday party. Your mom looked for weeks for the perfect dress and you wanted to wear shorts and a t-shirt." She handed Merle the photo of Sara smiling in a pretty sundress standing next to Carl with a gap toothed grin.

"Mom won?" Merle said.

"Long enough for a photo," Lori smiled. "She was in regular clothes for the party. Which was good because they all got filthy."

Merle slid the photograph into his shirt pocket. Lori watched him but kept silent. Merle said, "I'm off. Princess, you stay in this house until Daryl gets here with your shoes. Then you stay close. Mind Miss Lori."

Sara got up and went to him. He stood there for a moment, until she crooked her finger at him. He stooped and she hugged him tightly, "Promise you'll come back."

"I will." Merle patted her head and left.

Maggie brought Sara a Ziploc bag for her to put the photographs in.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Sara was sitting on the front porch reading a book when the rest of the group drove up. Daryl went to her immediately after shutting off the bike.

"Merle went looking for Sophia," she reported.

"By himself?"

"He didn't want anyone to go with him. Said I should stay here until you got here."

Rick came out to greet everyone and report on Carl.

*x*x*x*x*x*

They held a funeral for Otis. Daryl stood with Sara in front of him, his arms around her, his hands clasped under her chin. When Shane started to eulogize Otis, he felt her shift nervously. He also noticed that Shane's eyes flicked to her often, but never locked with her gaze.

*x*x*x*x*x*

They spread the map out on the truck's hood. Hershel reminded Rick and Shane that they weren't strong enough to go out.

"Guess it's just me then," Daryl said.

"Can I go?" Sara asked.

"No, you'll just slow me down," Daryl replied. Everyone looked at him in shock. "What?"

"That was a bit harsh," Andrea said.

Daryl rolled his eyes, "Lil' Bit, you want me to feed you a shovel'a bullshit reasons why you can't go with me?"

"No," Sara said with a shake of her head. "You shouldn't lie."

Daryl shrugged at Andrea then planned his search route.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Lori held Sara's hand as they gathered around the well and the waterlogged walker. Shane threw out an arm as Sara leaned over to look in. "Careful."

The argued over what to do, deciding to try to pull the walker out to try to avoid contaminating the water.

Sara made a disgusted face, "I'm sure it's already contaminated. Do you even have a way to test it?"

"Still we should try," Maggie said.

Sara examined the well. "If we drop a rope down and can manage to loop its neck or arms, we should be able to pull it out."

Maggie quickly tied a slip knot. Shane lowered it down but was unable to loop the walker.

"Come on you son of a bitch," Shane cursed. "Just reach through the noose. Shit!" The rope coiled over the arm, but slipped off before it could tighten. "Oh this is why I don't fish."

Sara smiled, "Anybody have a strong fishhook?"

"Yes," Dale replied. "Yes I do."

"Bait?" Shane asked.

"I'll find somethin'," Maggie replied.

They rigged the rope with Dale's fishhook and a canned ham. But the walker ignored the bait.

"We need live bait," Andrea said.

"I'll go," Sara offered. "I'm smallest."

"No," Shane said.

"Absolutely not," Lori echoed.

"No way in hell," added Andrea.

"Consider that unanimous Lil' Bit," T-dog said.

"I'll go," Glenn said.

"Try to get the noose around the chest," Sara suggested. "It's stronger than the neck, especially considering how waterlogged and decomposed it is."

Glenn was down in the well when the water pump suddenly snapped loose.

"GLENN," Sara screamed.

"SARA GET BACK," Maggie commanded.

The adults leapt into action to pull Glenn up. He emerged from the well and handed the rope over that led down to the walker. They dragged the walker out but unfortunately the plan didn't work and they ended up having to seal off the well anyway.

*x*x*x*x*x*

As darkness fell, Daryl stood outside of the tent smoking a cigarette. He'd searched the entire day but all he'd found was a possible hidey-hole where Sophia or someone small spent a night recently. The can of sardines had still been wet and hadn't smelled spoiled. But there had been no other sign of her. And there was no sign of Merle.

T-dog was on top of the RV keeping watch. Rick and Lori were in the house with Carl. The others were in their tents or sleeping in their vehicles. Daryl sighed heavily and pinched out the cigarette then kicked off his boots and slipped into the tent where Sara lay. Sara was awake, staring up at the roof of the tent.

"Hey Lil' Bit, you should be sleepin'."

"She's still out there. Alone. It's the third night," Sara whispered.

"I know," Daryl sighed as he flopped onto his cot. "She's gotta be somewhere. I shoulda found some sign by now. Somethin' besides that cabin. Ain't like she knows how to hide her tracks."

"You think we'll find her?"

"Yeah. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe the next day. I know I ain't gonna quit lookin' until we do."

"Where's Merle?"

"Dunno. Musta gotten too far out, had to hole up for the night. He'll be back tomorrow." He shifted onto his side. "Go to sleep."

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_What if I'm far from home?  
Oh brother I will hear you call  
What if I lose it all?  
Oh sister I will help you out  
Ooooh if the sky comes falling down, for you  
There's nothing in this world I wouldn't do_

_*x*x*x*x*x_*

"I'm gonna take a horse and ride the ridge," Daryl said.

"Can I come today?" Sara asked. "I won't slow you down if we're on a horse."

"Can you ride?" Daryl asked. Sara nodded.

"You're not seriously considering taking her," Andrea argued.

"What's it to you?" Daryl snapped. "She can ride. She can shoot. So yeah, she can go."

The conversation turned to Daryl's Chupacabra sighting. Jimmy laughed at him and Daryl responded angrily.

"You believe in a blood sucking dog?"

"You believe in dead people walkin' around?" Daryl asked.

Sara scowled, "Just because you've never seen something doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Have you ever seen the wind? You still know it exists. You believe in God."

"I have faith, if that's what you mean," Jimmy retorted. "That's different."

"Really?" Sara replied. "Why?"

"It's just… completely different," Jimmy repeated.

"Dude, you're arguing with an eleven year old," T-dog reprimanded. "Badly."

"Well the eleven year old is ten times smarter than he is," Daryl quipped. "Come on Lil' Bit, let's go saddle up." He offered his hand and Sara went with him without a backward glance.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Daryl had Sara on the horse in front of him so that he could carry his crossbow on his back. And so he could keep hold of her as they rode up to the ridge. "We're lookin' for signs. Broken branches, disturbed ground, trampled grass. Shit like that. K?"

"OK," she nodded.

"We shoulda borrowed a hat for ya," Daryl said.

"I'm fine," she replied. "I don't like wearing hats."

Daryl grunted, "Me neither."

"Or dresses."

"Not fond of wearin' dresses either."

Sara giggled.

Daryl found Sophia's doll on the creek bank. He called her name but heard no response. He swung back into the saddle behind Sara and guided the horse higher on the ridge.

He never saw the snake until the horse spooked. Both of them were thrown off and the horse galloped away.

Sara managed to catch herself on a tree at the top of the ridge, but Daryl tumbled down, out of control. He crashed through branches and brush, landing hard in the creek bed with an arrow in his side.

"Daryl?"

"I'm OK," Daryl called back.

"Really?"

"No," he admitted. "Be right up. You OK?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

"Yes."

Daryl ripped his shirt sleeves and bound the arrow to keep it from moving. Then he used a tree branch to search the muddy creek bottom for his crossbow. "Still with me Lil' Bit?"

"Yes."

He found the crossbow and climbed out of the creek. Huffing and puffing and randomly cursing himself, he climbed the ridge to where Sara was. She was just below the top, still clutching the tree that had halted her fall.

Daryl paused for a second to catch his breath. Sara stared wide-eyed at the arrow sticking through Daryl's side. She slid around the tree, still hanging on, and reached toward him. Daryl panted and started forward. He reached up and grasped her hand. He managed a few more steps, then his foot slipped. He dug in desperately and immediately let go of Sara. The ground gave way under him. He scrambled but started to slide further. Sara lunged forward, catching hold of his collar.

The ground crumbled.

Sara yelped.

Daryl cursed.

And they both tumbled down the embankment.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_Hey brother, there's an endless road to rediscover  
Hey sister, do you still believe in love? I wonder  
Ooooh if the sky comes falling down, for you  
There's nothing in this world I wouldn't do_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Daryl's eyes opened slowly.

"Well, well, well, look at this shit."

Daryl focused on a face he thought he'd never see again. "Dad?"

His father's reddened face leaned in close, "What'cha doin' there boy? Layin' in the dirt? Gonna cry now, little girlie?"

"Shut up."

"Damn little pussy ass, ain't no way you're my kid. Tried to make a man outta ya and you just run off. Bet you never thought to come check on your old man when things went to hell."

"Things with you were already hell," Daryl growled.

"Runnin' to your brother whenever things din't go your way. Damn little shit. Good for nothin' pansy. Worthless." A splash of spit hit Daryl's cheek. "Shoulda drowned ya at birth. Ain't never gonna 'mount to nothin'." His father began kicking his leg. Nothing new. "Look atcha. No sense. Useless piece of trash."

"Get up little brother," Merle's voice boomed.

"Merle?"

"On your feet brother. Gotta get outta here. Gotta get Lil' Bit back to the farm."

"Merle. Hurts." Daryl's eyes searched for his brother but all he could see was his father's evil face.

"I know. But you gotta get up. Pull that arrow out and bind yourself proper. Get your ass outta this ditch or it'll be your grave. MOVE!"

His father laughed, "Ain't gonna move. Ain't got no backbone. Ain't got no sense." He began kicking again.

Merle roared "GET THE HELL AWAY FROM HIM."

"What you gonna do about it?"

"What I shoulda done long time ago."

A gunshot rang out. Daryl's father jerked to one side and disappeared.

Another gunshot.

Daryl opened his eyes. He was lying at the edge of the creek. Sara was next to him with her father's gun in her hands. Two walkers lay dead in the water. Daryl lifted his hand to his face and wiped away the muddy water that had splashed onto his cheek.

"Daryl please wake up," she whispered.

"I'm here, Lil' Bit," Daryl replied.

She looked back to him. Her face and clothing were covered in mud. And blood. She was scratched up and bruised.

"I had to shoot them. It was really loud," she reported.

"I heard," he replied. "You OK?"

She shook her head, "My leg's broken," her voice was shaky.

Daryl forced himself to sit up despite the pain. Sara's leg was bent midway down her calf in an obvious break. He could see the bone protruding from the skin and blood.

"Shit," he cursed.

He took a few quick breaths then untied and yanked the arrow from his side. He then had to scramble to get it into the crossbow and fire at a third walker emerging from the woods.

"Wait here," Daryl commanded as he got to his feet. He yanked his knife from its sheath and went to the ridge. He cut two sturdy branches from the brush, then stripped the bark off in long strands. He came back to her. "I'm gonna hafta set the break. It's gonna hurt like a motherfu… uh… like a bit…" he stopped and shook his head. "It's gonna hurt. But you gotta be quiet."

She nodded and pulled her shirt up into her mouth to bite down hard. He quickly grabbed hold of her leg and pulled it back into place. She panted and tears fell, but she didn't scream.

"Good girl. Real good. Your Uncle Rick's right, you're stronger than anyone I've ever met." Daryl wrapped her leg in his flannel shirt then braced it with the tree branches, tying it securely with the strips of bark. "Gotta figure out how'ta get back up outta here."

She shook her head, "We should follow the creek that way," she pointed. "There's got to be an easier place to climb."

"Smart girl."

"You were talking when you were asleep," Sara reported as Daryl bound his side up with the sleeves of his shirt. "Your dad. He was mean. Like Sophia's dad."

It wasn't really a question but he nodded.

"My dad had a mark on his back. Like yours. His dad was like that too."

"He ever hurt you," Daryl asked.

Sara shook her head, "I never met him."

"Your dad was smart too," Daryl said.

Daryl huffed out a few breaths then pushed to his feet. "Gonna put you up on my back, Lil' Bit. You gotta try to stay high, off my side here, OK?" She nodded. He grunted and lifted her. She let out a low moan as he jostled her leg. By the time she was on his back, they were both panting and sweating. She hooked her arms over his shoulders and pulled herself up high, resting her elbows on his shoulders. He tucked his arm under her bottom, holding her in place. The other grabbed his crossbow. With a few more gasps, he started walking in the direction she had pointed.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_What if I'm far from home?  
Oh brother I will hear you call  
What if I lose it all?  
Oh sister I will help you out  
Ooooh if the sky comes falling down, for you  
There's nothing in this world I wouldn't do_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Sara was shaking. Daryl wasn't sure if it was from shock or pain but he couldn't put her down to check. He knew he'd never be able to pick her back up. He was leaning forward, keeping her balanced on his upper back. One hand under her butt. The other dragging the crossbow.

Every step was agony.

He stopped for a breath and leaned forward against a tree. "Hang on Lil' Bit. We're almost there."

She didn't answer.

He plodded on.

Finally he stepped out of the woods and caught sight of the farmhouse and the RV. Figures were racing toward him.

Rick stumbled to a stop, his gun pointed at them.

"Wanna get that gun outta her face, Officer Friendly? Or you plannin' on shootin' us?" Daryl straightened up, hoping one of the men would come take Sara from his back.

"Jesus, Daryl?" Rick lowered the gun. He started forward.

A gunshot echoed across the field just as Daryl felt a searing pain in his forehead. He collapsed backwards, landing hard on Sara. He tried to roll free but the pain overwhelmed him and he blacked out.

"NO!" Rick screamed, leaping forward.

"Oh Jesus, no," Shane gasped. He and T-dog grabbed Daryl under the arms. "Easy, easy does it." They lifted him away from Sara.

Sara lay sprawled on the grass, blood spurting from a gash cut across her shoulder by the bullet. Her eyes were open, flooded with tears as she gasped for air.

Rick gently scooped her up and turned, once again finding himself running toward Hershel with a child bleeding in his arms.

"Is he… are they dead," Andrea cried as she ran up.

"Take that damn rifle away from her. NOW," Rick demanded.

Hershel met him halfway through the yard, "Rick stop. Let me see her. OK, the bullet went clean across. Looks like Daryl splinted her leg. Take her inside." He turned as they brought Daryl up, "Patricia, get the room ready. We'll have to move Carl. We got two more patients." He stopped to triage Daryl. "Take him inside. Gonna hafta stitch his side and his head. I swear I don't know how you people have stayed alive so long."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Hershel tied off the last stitch in Daryl's side. "Any idea where my horse is?"

"If it has any sense it's in the next county by now."

"We call that one Nellie. As in Nervous Nellie. I coulda told you she'd spook, if you'd bothered to ask," Hershel said.

Daryl lay on his side on the bed next to Sara. Sara was now dressed in a loose tank top with a fresh bandage covering stitches on her shoulder. Her leg was propped up on a pillow and in a fresh splint.

"That should do for now," Hershel said as he taped a bandage over Daryl's ribs. "I don't see any permanent damage from the arrow. And your head's too hard for even a bullet to bother."

"Ha, ha," Daryl snorted. "What about Lil' Bit? You gonna put a cast on her leg?"

"Have to wait for the swelling to go down," Hershel replied. "We'll need to keep her as still as possible until I can."

Rick sighed, "I never shoulda let…"

"Hey," Daryl snapped. "We'd'a been fine if 'Nervous Nellie' hadn't thrown a fit over a damn snake." He took a breath with a hand on his side. "Found the doll in the creek. Dunno if it washed there or if she dropped it. No prints anywhere on the banks nearby. Nothin'. It's like she disappeared into thin air." He carefully rolled onto his back and sat up.

"Where do you think you're goin'?" Hershel asked.

"My tent," Daryl replied as he struggled to his feet.

"No," Hershel caught him. "We'll put you up in the master bedroom tonight. I need to keep an eye on you and don't plan on traipsing through the yard to do it."

Rick walked over to Daryl and caught his arm, "Come on, you heard the Doc."

"He's a vet."

"Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, thank you very much," Hershel retorted.

"I'm gonna get the sheets all dirty," Daryl mumbled as Rick helped him out of the room.

"They've come up with this new idea," Rick said, "It's called 'doing laundry'. The women around here have become amazingly good at it." Shane came over and took Daryl's other arm to help him up the stairs.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Hershel came into his room late in the evening. Daryl was laying on his side with a book.

"How's Sara?"

"OK," Hershel replied. "Leg's still swollen. I gave her something for the pain and a mild sedative. She's asleep. Lori is in with her. We put a cot in the room for Carl. My daughter invited everyone in for dinner. Someone will bring you a plate in a little while."

"Thanks."

"Book any good?"

"No."

Hershel nodded, "I'll get you another. There's bound to be one here you'll like."

"S'OK," Daryl shrugged. "A book's a book. Might as well see who done it."

*x*x*x*x*x*

They ate in awkward silence. Glenn tried to break the ice, but was rebuffed. Then with the all too obvious passing of notes between him and Maggie, the tension increased.

"What is this shit?" Merle's voice rang out from the entryway. "Glad to see the family's havin' such a nice dinner. But in the middle of an apocalypse maybe someone oughtta be on watch?"

Rick and Shane rose to greet him.

Merle scowled at them. "I at least thought someone would be out lookin' for the girl. It's barely sundown!"

Shane snapped. "Look we gotta face it. That girl is dead."

Carol cried out and covered her mouth.

Shane whirled to face her. "Sorry Carol but that's the fact. After 72 hours missing, it is no longer a search and rescue, it is a recovery mission. And we can't waste any more time or men on a useless search for a corpse. She's dead. She's gone. You'll just have to accept that."

"So she's dead huh," Merle growled. "Wanna explain that to her?" He jerked his chin.

Sophia stepped into view. She was dirty and sweaty, but with a surprisingly clean face. She blinked in the light staring at the room of people. When all eyes went to her, she ducked behind Merle's legs. He reached back and rested his hand on her head.

"Sophia?" Carol's cry was one of shock and amazement. "You're alive? I can't…. believe it."

"Shit lady it's only been a few days," Merle snarled. When nobody moved, he snapped, "You plannin' on comin' and huggin' your kid?" His words spurred Carol into motion. She darted over and dropped to her knees to pull Sophia into her arms.

Rick placed his hand on Merle's shoulder. Merle glared at him. "You arrestin' me Officer Friendly? If not, get your damn hands off."

"Merle?"

Merle turned quickly, "Where the hell have you been…. Baby Brother what happened to you?"

"Bitch shot me," Daryl gasped as he crept down the stairs.

"What bitch?"

"This bitch," Andrea replied. "He came out of the woods covered in mud and blood. I didn't know it was him."

Merle glowered, "You fired a shot without knowin' exactly what was in your line of site? Somebody wanna tell me why she was given a gun in the first place." He went to Daryl and helped him down the last of the steps, then examined him carefully. "She shoot you twice? What the hell?"

"Took a horse, got thrown, fell down a ridge, impaled on my own damn arrow," Daryl summed up his day. "Then got shot."

"Shitty day," Merle observed.

Rick again went to Merle, "Merle. Come with me, OK?"

"Why?" Merle suddenly looked around the room, "Where is Sara?"

"In here," Rick explained. "She's hurt too."

"I took her with me," Daryl said, absently chewing on his thumbnail. "Thought it'd be OK. Her leg's broke. And the bullet creased her shoulder."

"She'll be OK," Hershel reported. "I'll cast the leg tomorrow when the swelling goes down. I've already stitched the shoulder." He stooped down to Sophia, "Hello little miss. My name is Hershel. Are you hurt anywhere?"

"She's not hurt. Tired. Needs a bath. But she's had food and water," Merle said. "I found her yesterday. Mid afternoon after I left here. But got turned around in the woods. By the time I found the highway it was too late to keep goin'. We spent the night in a hunter's tree stand. Walked for a few hours today 'fore I realized we were goin' in the wrong direction.

"You got lost," Daryl snorted.

"You gonna mock me?"

Daryl grinned, "You gotta let me a little, you never get lost."

"Wasn't lost," Merle retorted. "Just didn't realize we were east of the traffic jam rather than west."

"See most people would call that lost," T-dog chuckled.

Merle rolled his eyes and turned to follow Rick. Sophia let out a cry and jerked free of her mother to go to him. Merle stooped and caught her. "I'm just goin' to check on Sara. Be right back. You go with your momma. Let Doc Hershel check you over good and take a bath. I'll be right here. Go on." Sophia let herself be led upstairs by Carol and Beth. Once she was out of sight, Merle turned to the group at large, "Please. Somebody tell me you didn't give up on her that fast. Tell me you didn't just sit here all damn day." He walked away before they could answer him.

***x*x*x*x*x* **

**AN – Yeah, I know by the time they got to the farm, Sophia was dead and in the barn, but this is AU and her death was one that really bothered me. The idea of anyone, especially a child, dying alone in the woods after being attacked just got to me. Plus Daryl's determination to find her. So, Sophia lives! In this version at least.**

**And Welisarne – sorry – yes I shot Sara.**


	9. Chapter 9

**She Stayed – 9 – The burdens we carry**

The Walking Dead, all recognized characters, dialog, and situations belong to AMC, the creators, writers, and actors. Covers what Merle was doing during "Cherokee Rose" and "Chupacabra". AU obviously. Song is Demons, performed by Imagine

Lyrics by Grant, Alexander Jr.; Reynolds, Daniel Coulter; Sermon, Daniel Wayne; McKee, Benjamin Arthur; Mosser, Joshua Francis © Universal Music Publishing Group

**Thanks for your continued attention and reviews! And your patience. To the "Guest" reviewers, you're never going to like this Merle or where this journey is going, best to jump ship now. I'd respond privately but can't do that to anonymous reviews. But thanks for the numbers anyway.**

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_When the days are cold  
And the cards all fold  
And the saints we see  
Are all made of gold  
When your dreams all fail  
And the ones we hail  
Are the worst of all  
And the blood's run stale_

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle woke with the first bird call of the morning. Sara was a warm soft weight against his side.

It had been a very long time since a child had slept in his arms. He thought back as he gazed down at her. Daryl had been six, maybe seven. Not long before their mother had died. She and their father had been screaming at each other for days and the fight had finally turned physical. Merle had gathered up a few supplies and took Daryl out into the woods for the night. Sitting in the branches of an old tree, Merle had wrapped them in a blanket for warmth and Daryl had curled against him with his head on Merle's shoulder to sleep. It was one of the last nights they'd spent together. Soon after, Merle had gotten busted yet again and been sent to juvie. Their mother had died and Daryl was left alone with the old man. Merle had gone back when he got out, but immediately got into it with their father. He left with the clothes on his back, a bloody nose, and the echo of his brother's begging cries in his ears. He knew if he stayed he would end up killing the old man.

Daryl would be fifteen before he saw him again, showing up on Merle's doorstep with a backpack of belongings, a split lip, and a black eye. Merle had let him in and handed him a beer. After that they were only apart when Merle was serving time. He kept his brother close. Kept him fed, clothed, sheltered. Taught him what he needed to know to survive in the world.

Then the world changed. The dead started to walk and kill. At first Merle thought it best for him and Daryl to stick to the woods. But then the dead started wandering in the woods. In larger numbers than the two of them could handle. So Merle decided they were going to Atlanta. Actually believing the announcements that they would find sanctuary and protection there.

They'd met the group and despite Merle and Shane clashing almost immediately, Merle recognized the safety of their numbers and the value of their supplies. Merle's plan had been to raid the camp, take what they could, then get out and find a place to stay alive. Daryl hadn't mentioned the plan since Merle's shit storm of a run into Atlanta.

But things had gotten a lot more complicated since then. Merle sighed. He looked down at the girl sleeping securely in his arms. Not only had it been a long time since a child slept in his arms, it had been a very long time since anyone except Daryl trusted him as completely and absolutely as she seemed to. He'd never even considered having kids. Made every effort along the way to be sure he never had one. But now…

He heard the Greene girls creep down the stairs. Patricia was in the kitchen. He heard her sniff a few times, then putter around, he assumed starting breakfast. When meat began to sizzle in a pan, Sara woke up. She sat up in his arms.

"Good mornin', Princess," he said. She just blinked at him. He knew by now she wasn't much of a talker first thing in the morning. Took her awhile to warm up, though she seemed to come instantly awake, of course that could be because of the world they now lived in. "You wanna go see the horses?" She nodded. "You need to piss first?" She nodded again and he helped her climb over the arm of the chair. She padded past T-dog, still asleep in his chair, and Shane, sprawled on the floor and snoring softly.

Merle pressed forward but wasn't able to lower the foot rest on the recliner. He cursed under his breath and leaned over to try to grab the lever with his left hand. With a huge yawn, Glenn rose from the couch and walked over to push the lever to free Merle from the recliner. "Thanks," Merle grumbled.

"Hm-mm," Glenn nodded and walked back over to flop down on the couch.

Merle stood up and stretched. When he heard the toilet flush, he walked over to the bathroom. Sara emerged with a damp face. He winked at her then went into the bathroom.

*x*x*x*x*x*

They walked out to the front porch. Merle scooped Sara up with his right arm to carry her out to the corral. Instinctively settling her weight on the stump of his arm, leaving his good hand free. He sat her on the top rail of the fence and the horses immediately trotted over to greet them. Sara reached up and stroked the first nose that reached her. Merle braced her with his shoulder and an arm around her waist.

Merle heard footsteps approaching and nodded to Beth and Jimmy.

"Good mornin'," Beth greeted. "You like horses Sweetie?" Jimmy stood off to the side, close, but not too close.

"Yes," Sara replied as the next horse demanded her attention.

"This one is Buttons," Beth patted the closer horse's neck. "See the little spot on the forehead. Maggie thought it looked like a button. And this one is Blaze." She stroked the stripe on the other horse's nose. "That over there is Nellie." At the sound of her name, Nellie whickered and bobbed her head up and down. "Here, they love carrots."

Sara accepted the first carrot and broke it in half to feed to Buttons. She giggled as the horse gently took the treat from her hand. She fed pieces to the other two horses. Merle took a deep breath of the heavily scented air. They stood together for a short while, just taking in the peace and quiet of the morning.

Beth saw her father wave and gesture for them to come inside. "Breakfast must be ready."

Merle scooped Sara up and tossed her over his shoulder to carry her back into the house.

*x*x*x*x*x*

Hershel was waiting with Merle when Beth brought Sara back downstairs. Sara now wore a pair of denim shorts that came to her knees and were belted to offset the excess size. She wore a t-shirt with a picture of a horse on the front.

"No shoes?" Hershel observed.

"They're too big," Sara replied.

"She's got a pair in our SUV," Merle said.

Hershel stooped down, "Well you'll be OK for now. How do you feel today?" He checked her face and eyes, testing her coloring.

"I'm fine." Sara clutched at Beth's hand and glanced to Merle. Merle nodded to her.

"Princess, you remember what Rick said? You need to tell us if somethin' isn't OK," Merle gently reminded.

Sara nodded, "Yesterday was scary. But you said Carl was going to be OK now."

Hershel smiled at her, "Yes I think he is. He's a strong young man."

"I feel fine," Sara repeated. "Kinda hungry."

"Breakfast is ready," Hershel chuckled and struggled to his feet. Merle caught his arm and helped him rise.

"Thanks," Hershel groaned. "It's hard to get old."

"Yeah, but beats the alternative," Merle replied.

"True."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle sat down next to Sara at the dining room table. They bowed their heads as Hershel said the blessing. Then Merle stared down at the plate of food that was placed in front of him. The others began to rapidly devour their servings until reprimanded by Rick.

Sara ate a few bites, then reached over and cut the ham slice on Merle's plate into bite size pieces. She opened the biscuit and smeared butter then the peach jam that he handed to her. "Thanks, Princess," he whispered as he began to eat, savoring each bite.

"Coffee Mr. Dixon?" Patricia asked.

"Yeah. Please, and it's Merle," he replied as she poured a steaming cup of coffee.

"Milk or sugar?"

"No."

Patricia moved on to Glenn, "Coffee?"

"Oh, no thanks ma'am I'll stick to the juice," Glenn replied. "Everything is delicious. Did you make the jam?"

Patricia smiled sadly, "No. Beth and Annette are the jam makers."

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle walked into the woods. Sara's backpack was slung over his right shoulder loaded with supplies from the Greene family. He had a gun secured at his left side along with his hunting knife. He had a map of the area stuffed into his pocket courtesy of Hershel. Along with the photo of Sara and Carl that he'd stolen from her collection. He didn't know why he'd felt the need to have one, especially not that one in particular.

_*x*x*x*x*x*_

_I want to hide the truth  
I want to shelter you  
But with the beast inside  
There's nowhere we can hide_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

The sun had started its descent through the sky. The morning was gone. So was noon. Merle knelt at the edge of the creek and examined a slight disturbance in the mud. A single, small, smeared shoe print. Then mud tracked into grass that was pressed down. The mud was still wet. Merle smiled. "Sophia?" The only response was a nearby bird that took frantic flight from a bush.

Merle left the creek and went into the woods in the direction the prints seemed to be headed. The sun was on his left shoulder.

He hadn't gone too far when a scream rent through the air.

"SOPHIA?!"

She screamed again.

Merle raced ahead. He heard the groans of the walkers before he saw them. Five of them gathered around a tree. Sophia had climbed up to a low hanging branch. One of the walkers was yanking on her ankle, trying to pull her down to him.

He was the first one that Merle shoved his knife into. "Climb higher!" Merle snapped as he turned on the next walker. He used the knife and quickly dispatched the other walkers, then looked up to find Sophia had climbed up several more feet. "OK. All clear."

She stared down at him, eyes wide in her filthy face.

"Come on kid, ain't got all day," Merle said. "Let's go."

"Mr. Merle?"

"Yeah."

"Are you real?"

He snorted, "Yeah. Come on, climb down!"

Sophia carefully climbed down to where he could reach her. He looped his arm around her waist and lifted her down. She stiffened under his touch and pulled away as soon as her feet touched the ground.

"You bit? Or scratched?"

"No, sir."

"Ain't gotta 'sir' me," Merle sighed as he checked her over. "You hurtin' anywhere?" She shook her head. He sat the backpack down and yanked a bottle of water out. "Start sippin' this. Don't drink fast or you'll get sick." After a few minutes and a third of the bottle, he handed her a bag containing two biscuits slathered in jam. "You like peaches?"

She nodded with a smile and took a big bite of a biscuit. She quickly finished the first one and looked at the second, "You want one?"

"Nah, I ate already," he replied. "We found a farm. Good people. Doc named Hershel. He's got two daughters Beth and Maggie. And a woman named Patricia." He listed as she ate the second biscuit and drank some more water. "There was an accident while we were lookin' for you. Carl got hurt."

"Hurt? Hurt how?" gasped Sophia

"Shot. By a fat ass who couldn't tell a little boy from a deer. He's OK. Doc Hershel fixed him up proper," Merle soothed. He reached towards her but she froze, staring at his hand so he drew it back. "We'll be back to them by nightfall, you can see for yourself."

"Is my mom there?"

Merle nodded, then shrugged, "She might be out searchin' for you. But she'll come back there." He hefted the backpack to his right shoulder. "Let's go." He led her away from the corpses. "OK girlie, you walk by my left side, stay close enough for me to reach. No talkin', no noise. No wanderin'."

It was slow going through the dense woods. Merle could have gone faster but it was obvious that Sophia was tired. He stopped and let her rest for a few minutes.

"Girlie, I'm gonna carry you a while, we gotta move faster or we're gonna lose the daylight," Merle said. Sophia looked nervous, but she nodded and he stooped to let her climb onto his back. She was heavier than Sara, taller, but he could manage. He tucked his right arm under her butt as she clasped her arms around his neck. He set off again at a faster pace.

_*x*x*x*x*x*_

_No matter what we breed  
We still are made of greed  
This is my kingdom come  
This is my kingdom come_

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

Even moving well with Sophia perched on his back, it took a long time to reach the highway. Merle stooped and let Sophia slide to her feet to climb through the ditch along the roadside. The road was clear of all but a few cars.

Merle sighed heavily. "Where are all the cars Mr. Merle?" Sophia whispered.

"The snarl is up that way," Merle pointed.

"Are we going?"

Merle sighed again, "No. We gotta find someplace to camp for tonight. We ain't gonna make it back before dark."

Sophia shuddered, "It's scary out here at night."

"Ain't nothin' gonna hurt you, long as I'm 'round," Merle said. "Get me?" She bit her lip and nodded. "Come on."

He led her to a car pulled over to the shoulder of the highway. The windows were all smashed out and the front seats were stained with blood. But there was a cooler in the back. Merle opened it and found several bottles of water and a box of granola bars.

"Are they dead? The people from the car?" Sophia asked.

"Yep," Merle replied as he tossed two blankets from the car over his shoulder and lifted the cooler. "Let's go."

"Where?"

"Saw a hunters tree stand a few minutes ago. We'll camp there tonight." He led her back to the stand mostly hidden in the foliage. Sophia climbed up the wooden slats nailed into the tree. Merle handed up the cooler and blankets then started the awkward one handed climb.

They spread out one blanket to sit on, then opened the cooler for the water. Merle had given Sophia some of the food provided by the Greenes while they were walking, but there was still some jerky and peanut butter and crackers for their dinner. Merle left some water and the granola bars to serve as their breakfast. After they ate, they climbed back down to relieve themselves, then returned to the stand. Merle sat down with his back to the tree trunk. Sophia sat down near him. Then she got up and moved closer to the edge, only to scramble back when the board under her feet creaked loudly.

"OK darlin' time to settle," Merle said. "Come'ere," He patted the spot next to him. "Quit flittin' 'round like a hummin'bird.

Sophia whimpered. She'd gone pale with sweat beading on her forehead. He could see the panic in her eyes and the violent beat of her heart in the pulse in her neck. She was terrified.

Merle frowned, "What?"

She shuddered and shook her head violently back and forth. "Please."

He froze and cursed low and long, "Sophia, I ain't gonna hurt yah. Nobody's gonna hurt you like that ever again." He leaned forward slowly until he was within reach of her. "What your daddy did was wrong. The worst kinda wrong there is. Daddies ain't supposed to hurt their kids. 'Specially not like that. They're supposed to protect them, keep others from hurtin' them."

She was still shaking but she moved closer to him. "He said that all daddies… He said I had to…"

"He lied. There's an evil inside him that he gave in to. And if he was here now, now that I know, I'd kill him with my bare hands," Merle growled. She stood for a long moment, then burst into tears and threw herself into his arms. He hesitated for a moment, then wrapped her in an embrace. He held her silently as she cried herself dry and fell asleep. Then he settled her across his lap, leaning against his chest and covered her with the other blanket.

Several walkers had been attracted by the noise of the weeping. They were under the stand, staggering back and forth and into each other, moaning and reaching up. But they couldn't reach them and now that Sophia had fallen silent, he hoped they would wander away.

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_When you feel my heat  
Look into my eyes  
It's where my demons hide  
It's where my demons hide  
Don't get too close  
It's dark inside  
It's where my demons hide  
It's where my demons hide  
__*x*x*x*x*x* _

Merle's head jerked up and he blinked rapidly. Sophia was still asleep, sprawled across him. The sun was just filtering through the leaves. He could hear rodents in the leaves on the wood floor. That plus the lack of moans meant there were no walkers remained.

Sophia shifted in her sleep and her hip came into contact with his groin. She awoke with a gasp and scrambled off his lap. She was scurrying back, coming too close to the edge. Merle lunged and caught her by the arm. She cried out.

"Settle down!" he commanded.

She was shaking and looking at him, specifically at the front of his pants. "Shit, girl, this?" he gestured with his stump, "This means it's mornin' and I gotta piss. Ain't got nothing to do with you. I ain't ever gonna hurt you like that. Never. No one will ever hurt you like that again, you hear me? Not so long as there's breath in me. Anyone tries, they're dead." She relaxed slowly and he pulled her away from the edge of the stand. "You're gonna give me a heart attack, Hummin'bird." He walked over to the far edge and unzipped to drain his bladder.

"Why does it get like that?" Sophia whispered.

Merle tucked himself away and rezipped his pants, "Inna mornin'? Dunno. Just does. When I'm with a woman, means she's fine," he smirked broadly. He turned and his smile faded at the look on her face. "Girlie, you think I'm a liar?"

"No, sir."

"Still ain't gotta 'sir' me. So I ain't a liar. So I must be tellin' the truth when I say that men, real men, don't do that to little girls. I ain't never. Daryl ain't. Men like women. Grown women. Get me?"

Sophia nodded.

"Good. Let's eat breakfast, then we'll get back to the farm."

"And my mom is there?"

Merle opened the cooler and retrieved the water and granola bars, "Prolly be out lookin' for you but she'll come back there. You'll see her before nighttime."

*x*x*x*x*x*

They set out on the highway, walking down the middle of the road, leaving plenty of space between themselves and the woods that might hide danger. Merle kept the pace slow so that Sophia didn't have to struggle to keep up and he stopped often to let her rest in the shade. Very few walkers wandered the road and Merle was able to put down the ones who came at them very easily.

"You're quiet," Merle said.

"Thinkin'," Sophia replied softly. "Got a lot to think about."

"OK," Merle nodded. "If you wanna talk…. I ain't much on talkin' but I can listen." Sophia made a face. Merle chuckled, "Or maybe you can talk to Miss Andrea or onna'tha ladies at the farm."

"Maybe."

*x*x*x*x*x*

But as the sun reached the highest point in the sky, Merle stopped suddenly, "Shit." Sophia stopped and looked at him. "I recognize that car. We drove by it the other day. We're goin' the wrong way."

"We're lost?"

"No," Merle retorted, "We're just goin' the wrong way. We gotta turn around." He stooped down, "Climb up, we gotta make some miles."

"I'm OK to walk," she said nervously.

Merle sighed, "Am I gonna hurt yah?"

"No."

"Gonna rape you?"

"No," Sophia whispered.

"Gonna let anyone else hurt yah?"

Sophia shook her head and climbed onto his back. "Sorry."

Merle rose up, tucking his arms under her legs, "Don't need to be sorry. It's OK to be scared or angry or nervous or whatever."

He was able to walk more quickly despite her added weight but it was still late afternoon by the time they came back to the point where they had entered the highway, and later still when the traffic snarl came into view. Sophia was walking again by then. She paused by the car she'd been hiding under. Merle stopped and let her be until she resumed walking. When they reached the turn off, Merle once again had Sophia climb onto his back.

The last rays of sunlight faded from the sky as the duo reached the far edge of the Greene family property. Merle let Sophia slide to her feet next to a water pump. He pumped until water flowed and let Sophia drink her fill. Then he wet down his handkerchief and scrubbed her face clean.

"Can't have you meetin' these people lookin' like a ragamuffin," he said.

Sophia giggled, "What's a ragmuffin?"

"Rag-A-muffin," Merle repeated. "It's a scruffy kid with a dirty face. Can't do nothin' for the rest of yah, but that's better. Come on Hummin'bird. Let's get you back to your momma."

*x*x*x*x*x*

_When the curtain's call  
Is the last of all  
When the lights fade out  
All the sinners crawl  
So they dug your grave  
And the masquerade  
Will come calling out  
At the mess you made  
Don't want to let you down  
But I am hell bound  
Though this is all for you  
Don't want to hide the truth_

*x*x*x*x*x*

Merle kept looking around as they approached the farmhouse, but saw no one. No one on watch. No one out and about. Sensing his tension, Sophia reached up and grasped his hand tightly. He gave it a gentle squeeze and led her by the camp set up in the yard. They climbed the stairs to the porch and Merle walked over to peek in the window.

"You have got to be shittin' me," he snarled and let go of Sophia to yank open the door. He stomped in and she followed slowly. "What is this shit? Glad to see the family's havin' such a nice dinner. But in the middle of an apocalypse maybe someone oughtta be on watch?" Rick and Shane exchanged glances and stood up. Merle scowled at them. "I at least thought someone would be out lookin' for the girl. It's barely sundown!"

Shane snapped. "Look we gotta face it. That girl is dead." Carol cried out and covered her mouth. Shane whirled to face her. "Sorry Carol but that's the fact. After 72 hours missing, it is no longer a search and rescue, it is a recovery mission. And we can't waste any more time or men on a useless search for a corpse. She's dead. She's gone. You'll just have to accept that."

"So she's dead huh," Merle growled. "Wanna explain that to her?" He jerked his chin.

Sophia walked closer to him. She blinked in the light staring at the room of people. When all eyes went to her, she ducked behind Merle's legs. He reached back and rested his hand on her head.

"Sophia?" Carol's cry was one of shock and amazement. "You're alive? I can't…. believe it."

"Shit lady it's only been a few days," Merle snarled. When nobody moved, he snapped, "You plannin' on comin' and huggin' your kid?" His words spurred Carol into motion. She darted over and dropped to her knees to pull Sophia into her arms. Sophia glanced up to Merle and stood stiffly in her mother's embrace.

Merle glared at Rick and the cop's hand on his shoulder, "You arrestin' me Officer Friendly? If not, get your damn hands off."

"Merle?"

Merle turned quickly startled at the sight of his brother coming down the steps with bandages stark white against his skin, "Where the hell have you been…. Baby Brother what happened to you?"

"Bitch shot me," Daryl replied.

"What bitch?" Merle scowled at the group, furious that his brother was hurt.

"This bitch," Andrea replied. "He came out of the woods covered in mud and blood. I didn't know it was him."

Merle glowered, "You fired a shot without knowin' exactly what was in your line of site? Somebody wanna tell me why she was given a gun in the first place." He went to Daryl and helped him down the last of the steps, "She shoot you twice? What the hell?"

"Took a horse, got thrown, fell down a ridge, impaled on my own damn arrow," Daryl summed up his day. "Then got shot."

"Shitty day," Merle observed.

Rick again went to Merle, "Merle. Come with me, OK?"

"Why?" Merle suddenly realized who was missing, "Where is Sara?"

"In here," Rick explained, keeping his voice low and steady, "She's hurt too."

"I took her with me," Daryl said, absently chewing on his thumbnail. Merle automatically reached over and pulled his hand free, "Thought it'd be OK. Her leg's broke. And the bullet creased her shoulder."

"She'll be OK," Hershel reported. "I'll cast the leg tomorrow when the swelling goes down. I've already stitched the shoulder." He stooped down to Sophia, "Hello little miss. My name is Hershel. Are you hurt anywhere?"

"She's not hurt. Tired. Needs a bath. But she's had food and water," Merle said. "I found her yesterday. Mid afternoon after I left here. But got turned around in the woods. By the time I found the highway it was too late to keep goin'. We spent the night in a hunter's tree stand. Walked for a few hours today 'fore I realized we were goin' in the wrong direction.

"You got lost," Daryl snorted.

"You gonna mock me?"

Daryl grinned, "You gotta let me a little, you never get lost."

"Wasn't lost," Merle retorted. "Just didn't realize we were east of the traffic jam rather than west."

"See most people would call that lost," T-dog chuckled.

Merle rolled his eyes and turned to follow Rick. Sophia let out a cry and jerked free of her mother to go to him. Merle stooped and caught her by the shoulder. "I'm just goin' to check on Sara. Be right back. You go with your momma. Let Doc Hershel check you over good and take a bath. I'll be right here. Go on." He let her go and gave her a nudge towards her mother. Sophia let herself be led upstairs by Carol and Beth.

Once she was out of sight, Merle took a deep breath "Please. Somebody tell me you didn't give up on her that fast. Tell me you didn't just sit here all damn day."

Merle walked over to the room that was acting as the farmhouse infirmary. Sara lay on her back in the bed, sleeping peacefully. Her leg was propped up on a pillow. Carl was asleep on a cot against the wall.

"I'm sorry, Brother," Daryl whispered.

"Ain't your fault, Baby Brother. I'd'a let her go with yah if I'd been here," Merle replied. "We just gotta remember she's more fragile than we are."

"Dunno 'bout that," Daryl smirked at the memory. "Had'ta set her leg myself. She barely made a sound."

Sara shifted and groaned. Both men froze. Her eyes fluttered then opened.

"Hey Princess," Merle greeted as he stooped next to the bed.

"Hi," she replied, "You were gone a long time."

Merle nodded, "Yeah. Got turned around a bit."

"Did you find her?" Carl whispered, woken by the voices.

"Yeah," Merle nodded. "She's upstairs. She's fine."

"Thank you," Carl yawned. He gave a sleepy grin, "You keep savin' my girlfriends."

"Girlfriends?" Merle glared but Carl was already dozing off. "Don't think I like that much." Daryl chuckled, then groaned and grasped his side. "Come on Baby Brother, let's get you back to your bed. Then I need a shower."

"Good idea," Rick said from the doorway. "Then we've got dinner." He moved in to help Merle support Daryl. "Hershel had him upstairs in the master."

Daryl was sweating and panting by the time they reached the second floor. Merle's jaw was clenching as they half carried him down the hall to the master bedroom. He and Rick gently lay the injured man back down into the bed. Hershel came in with a syringe. As soon as Daryl was sprawled out, Hershel injected his arm.

"Hey!" Daryl scowled.

"Hay is for horses, young man," Hershel replied. "Relax. You're hurtin' and this'll help."

"Ain't a pussy, you should save the meds for the kids," Daryl growled. Then his eyes rolled and he visibly relaxed, "Oh."

Merle chuckled, "Go to sleep, Baby Brother." Then he scowled and touched Daryl's back. He pressed Daryl forward and ran his hand across his brother's marred skin. "Daryl? What the hell?"

"You knew," Daryl slurred. "Yah knew and yah left me there anyway." His eyes closed and he passed out.

"You didn't know. Did you?" Hershel asked.

Merle shook his head, tracing the scars down Daryl's back. "Never woulda left him there." He barked out a laugh, "All these years, I ain't never seen him without a shirt on. How fucked up is that?"

"I'm guessin' nobody has," Rick said. "Go on and take a shower then come down and eat."

_*x*x*x*x*x* _

_No matter what we breed  
We still are made of greed  
This is my kingdom come  
This is my kingdom come  
*x*x*x*x*x* _

Merle sighed heavily as the warm water sluiced over the tight muscles in his back. All the walking combined with carrying Sophia had done a number on his back. He stood for several long moments under the spray, the image of Daryl's back haunting his thoughts. He hadn't known about the scars. Hadn't even known about the tattoos. How had they spent so many years together without him seeing his brother's back? Hell the last few months they'd been in a damn tent. He sighed again.

He lathered up quickly but thoroughly, then rinsed. One last minute of the water pouring down over his face before shutting it off. He pushed back the shower door and came face to face with Carol.

"Shit, woman!"

"Here," she handed him a towel. He took it and dried his face. He wiped at his chest, down to his groin and rubbed himself, keeping his gaze locked with hers, a smirk spreading across his mouth. She rolled her eyes, "Please, don't flatter yourself. I'm not here for that."

"Lady, you came in here while I was in the damn shower. Whatta yah expect me to think?"

"I came in here to thank you," she snapped.

He wrapped the towel around his waist, holding it in place with his stump and tucking it in securely. Carol took a deep breath and let it out. She grabbed another towel and reached over to wipe the water from his arms and the back of his neck. "I wanted to thank you for finding my daughter."

"And you couldn't wait for me to come downstairs."

"I didn't want an audience," she said softly, looking up to him.

His jaw clenched, "You thanked me. Get out."

"What's wrong with you?" she snapped.

"I don't like you lady."

"Why?" she stepped back from the intensity of his glare.

"You wanna list? How 'bout you're a shitty mother, let's start there."

Carol gasped, "I am NOT a shitty mother because my child went missing."

Merle stepped into her face, "No. You are a shitty mother 'cause the first time your husband raised his hand to you, you didn't clock him a good one. Or walk away. You're a shitty mother 'cause you brought a child into a house with a man like that. And 'cause you didn't pack up and leave the first time he laid a hand on your child. You're a shitty mother 'cause you stood by KNOWING that your husband was LUSTIN' after your daughter and didn't kill him for it. Didn't get her outta there. You just let it happen. And you are a shitty mother 'cause when your child went missin' you didn't run after her. You didn't break free of everyone and anyone and chase after her. You barely even looked for her. You wrote her off after three days. You'd already buried her when she walked through that door. And now, now that you've got her back, instead of sittin' with her, holdin' her as tight as you can, you're in here makin' time with me. Look at you. Face flushed, heart poundin'. Just waitin' for me to either hit yah or kiss yah. Hell you don't even care which I do first so long as I do both." He scoffed. "Dry your panties 'cause I ain't gonna do neither."

Carol had been staring at him with a slacked jaw from shock and tears in her eyes. She let out a shuddering breath and turned to flee the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

Merle sighed and dropped the towel to dress in his clean set of clothing. He hung up both towels and left the bathroom through the other door that led into the master bedroom. He expected to see Daryl asleep on the bed so was shocked to find Carl there with Lori.

Carl was asleep, but Lori was awake and watching him. Rick was sitting on a chair under the window.

"Daryl woke back up and insisted on going back downstairs to sleep in with you and Sara," Rick explained.

"He was drugged," Merle argued.

"Yeah," Lori nodded, "But determined. He's fine. Rick and T-dog took him down and we brought Carl back up."

Merle nodded, "Where's Sophia?"

"In Beth's room," Lori answered.

Rick stood up and gestured to him, "Let's go. I want to check on Sara one last time before we go to sleep."

They walked down the hall. The next room was decorated with horses and ribbons. The main bed was empty, with a trundle bed pulled out holding Sophia. Merle walked over and stooped down.

Sophia was awake, "My mom went to get me somethin' to eat. She's been gone a long time."

"I'm sure she'll be back soon," Merle replied. "Prolly had'ta heat it up. Doc Hershel say you're OK?"

Sophia nodded, "He said you took good care of me."

Merle smiled.

Sophia smiled back, "Mr. Daryl found my doll in the creek," she showed him the scruffy thing.

"Good," Merle replied.

"Hi," Beth said from the doorway.

Merle turned to see Beth standing there with a plate and glass. Carol stood behind her staring at the floor. Merle looked back to Sophia, "See there's your dinner. I'll be downstairs with Daryl and Sara if you need me."

"Thank you," she said.

Merle winked, "G'night Hummin'bird."

*x*x*x*x*x*

The dining room was empty now, except for a plate covered with a cloth napkin. Merle sat down and removed the napkin to find slices of beef already cut into bite-size pieces, potatoes with gravy, beans, and biscuits already buttered. "God bless," he moaned and picked up a fork.

"You want ice tea?" Rick asked.

Merle nodded with his mouth full.

Rick sat the glass down and poured the tea, then took a seat. "Merle."

Merle swallowed, "Tell your wife sorry 'bout… what y'all heard."

Rick nodded, "Look I don't disagree with anything that you said, but you could've been a little… gentler with her."

"Dixons don't do gentle," Merle growled.

Rick snorted.

"You laughin' at me?"

"No," Rick said with a grin, "Just wish I had a picture of you walkin' the floor with Sara asleep on your shoulder to show you. Don't do gentle." He snickered.

Merle sighed, "Kids is different. That woman…"

"That woman is damaged," Rick whispered. "I've seen it all too often. Women that beat down rarely fight back."

"I know," Merle nodded. "Just pissed me off. One look at me and she assumed I'd be the type to raise my hand to her. Ain't never hit a woman my entire life, ain't about to start now." He shoveled another forkful of food into his mouth.

*x*x*x*x*x*

_They say it's what you make  
I say it's up to fate  
It's woven in my soul  
I need to let you go_

Your eyes, they shine so bright  
I want to save their light  
I can't escape this now  
Unless you show me how

When you feel my heat  
Look into my eyes  
It's where my demons hide  
It's where my demons hide  
Don't get too close  
It's dark inside  
It's where my demons hide  
It's where my demons hide

*x*x*x*x*x*

Daryl was lying on the cot, now pushed over next to the bed that held Sara. Both of them were sound asleep. Merle was on the floor on a sleeping bag, dozing, but alert for any sound from either of them. He roused at the sound of soft footsteps. Sophia crept in.

"Hey Hummin'bird, what's wrong?"

"Bad dream," she whispered. She was clutching her doll to her chest.

"Where's your momma?"

"Sleepin'," she replied. She tiptoed over to the sleeping bag and settled herself down next to him. He scooted back against the wall to give her more space. "Safer here," she whispered over a yawn. Merle covered her with the light quilt he'd been given. Within minutes, she was asleep. Merle went back to his semi-alert snooze.

*x*x*x*x*x*


End file.
